Chateau Lloyd

I've been checking Amazon from time to time to see when the next season of Clarkson's Farm drops.  No such luck last night, but Renfield was available.  I wasn't interested, but my wife wanted to see it.

Renfield exemplifies what is wrong with modern film writing.  Even though the movie is trying to mock therapeutic culture in an over-the-top comedy, it comes across as preachy and labored.

The dialog is absolutely terrible.  Actual people do not talk anything like the characters, who sit passively while long, convoluted and utterly awkward monologues are thrown back and forth.  The sub-plot about the sisters in law enforcement was labored and forced, and drove away the fleeting memory of what fleeting laughs I had previously enjoyed.

The core issue is that this movie can't figure out if it's a comedy, or making serious social commentary.  It's possible to do both (Tootsie comes to mind), but it takes a slot of skill to pull it off.  Modern product staff simply can't get it done.

Put simply: know the kind of movie you want, and make that.  I got a sense that the writers were fighting among themselves as to whether this should be completely campy or have moments of serious drama.  The result was a scattershot pastiche that was tedious to watch.

Hollywood is clearly capable of making good movies.  Top Gun: Maverick is great, I've seen it four times at least, and it still impresses.  That is because the production crew knew what they wanted to make.  These folks are also likely from an older generation, who cut their teeth on better films.

My recommendation is that rather than see Renfield, imagine how you would have written the movie, because it will be better than the actual film.