For years he has been the familiar, servant and minion of the depraved Vampire Count Dracula (Nicolas Cage), and he chafes under his rule. Despite super powers and long life, the consequences of this all begin to get to him. So he enrolls in a self-help group for toxic relationships, and ends up crossing paths with not only his boss, but angry traffic officer Quincy (Akwafina), and a spoilt gangster Teddy Lobo (Ben Schwarz).
Improving oneself sucks.
This horror comedy from the outset has very "Warm Bodies" energy in its tone, stylings and even aesthetic - there are star wipes, tri-split-screen montages done to funky upbeat music, and a total acceptance of the wacky shenanigans at work here. We even start on a freeze-frame with narration from Hoult stating something to the effect of "this is me, and this is the situation I'm in..."
It works. A lot more could be done with the concept (extracting oneself from the literal thrall of an evil boss in a toxic relationship), but it gets by as a fun and cartoonishly gory comedy largely on its upbeat good graces and the talents of its cast: Nicolas Cage naturally steals the show as a truly repellant, petty, snide, delicious Dracula; and it's actually great seeing a guy appreciate the talents of Shoreh Aghadashloo by casting her as a smoky, sultry villainess dressed all in white, and Ben Schwarz is bizarrely inspired as the wannabe gangster dickhead (who gets a great subversive exchange with Renfield at the end). But it's Hoult who goes all out, and reigns in the movie. He elevates whatever he is in, and is very much the British Ethan Hawke. Here his droll monologues and quirky reactions to the violence never veer into annoyance and instead remain charming.
God fucking damn it I want a sequel to "About a Boy"...
Oh, there's a cameo by William Ragsdale as a priest killing Dracula, which is always welcome. I fucking love "Fright Night" so much.
And just in case the 2012 audience wasn't abundently clear with its Nicholas Hoult, editings, tone, plot and genuinely amusing gore: My Chemical Romance appear on the soundtrack.
And I will not tell you which one it is.
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