‘Renfield’ Has Some Bite, Humor

Comedy, crime and camp animate this unique film

By Jake Coyle AP Film Writer

In 1988’s “Vampire’s Kiss,” he played a New York literary agent who thought he was an immortal bloodsucker. His bugeyed performance was essentially the birth of the over-the-top, kabuki-inflected mythology of Cage.

Years later, it would launch a thousand memes - a kind of digital version of becoming undead. Thirty-five years later with “Renfield,” Cage is finally playing the genuine article, complete with bloodthirsty fangs and a dapper velvet smoking jacket. Casting Cage, our grandest of ghouls, as Dracula is so predestined that it almost risks being too on the nose.

The good news is that, no, he’s perfect as Dracula. The bad news is that Cage’s Dracula is only a supporting role here, making “Renfield” more of a tasty mor-