Day Shift

Title: Day Shift
Director: J.J. Perry
Released: 2022
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Dave Franco, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Meagan Good, Karla Souza, Steve Howey, Scott Adkins, Snoop Dogg

Plot: Bud (Foxx) is a pool cleaner working in L.A. which is really a cover for his real job as a vampire hunter. Meanwhile the vampire leader Audrey (Souza) is putting into action her plan to raise a vampire army.

Review: Wasting little time in throwing the audience into the world of vampire hunting as we go from Bud scooping a dead possum out of a pool to battling a psycho vampire granny who has the ability to contort her body Stuntman turned director J.J. Perry and certainly shows he has an eye for action with his years working as both a stuntman and stunt coordinator are put to good use here as he certainly puts together some incredibly energetic and imaginative action scenes throughout the film. 

Bud, while an excellent vampire hunter, is also a man down on his luck and separated from his wife who is threatening to move with his daughter to Florida unless he can find the money to pay for her tuition fees. To make matters worse his reckless approach to vampire hunting has him also suffering the wrath of the vampire hunters union who after kicking him out for his countless violations of their code decide to give him one last chance while also saddling him working the day shift while under the supervision of the by the book union rep Seth (Franco)

Certainly I am far from the biggest Jamie Foxx fan with his filmography delivering mixed returns for myself while he was certainly the biggest flaw in Baby Driver. Here though he truly manages to knock it out of the park as Bud who while he presents a gruff exterior is really a good guy who is trying to make things work so he can provide for his daughter. His inexperienced partner Seth meanwhile is largely played for laughs as he is constantly overwhelmed by the situations Bud drags him into aswell as a running joke about him constantly wetting himself which is the kind of role that Franco excels at though much like Fright Night’s Evil Ed for some unexplainable reason once he gets turned into a vamp he suddenly becomes an even better character as he now struggles to get used to his new vamp powers and cravings. Elsewhere Snoop Dogg provides fun support as the cowboy slayer Big John which while not exactly a big test of his acting chops plays perfectly off his natural charisma. 

One of the strongest aspects of the film is certainly with its world building as like John Wick’s Continental here Vampire Hunting is controlled by the Union an international organisation who also provide the best rates when it comes to paying out for vampire teeth the most valuable commodity in this world. At the same time Perry establishes a variety of vampire types all with their own rules bringing back fond memories of the World of Darkness games. While it might only be surface details established with this film, it certainly left me wanting to see more of this world and see how it could be developed further in the same way that each John Wick movie has added a little extra to its world. 

Unsurprisingly considering Perry’s background the action scenes are the real standout here with Perry casting performers from Cirque du Soleil feeling the pinch of Covid-19 pandemic to play one of the many vampire breeds the slayers encounter which really helps to create some truly vibrant action sequences as his vampires twist their bodies into grotesque forms while also having the ability to suddenly appear from air vents or other small spaces. Perry also doesn’t just limit himself to bullet riddled shootouts and bone crunching brawls but also adds a thrilling chase through the L.A. sewers as he attempts to outrun a group of vamps. 

For fans of old school gangster rap and hip hop the soundtrack will unquestionably be an added bonus as it runs through a hit list of popular rap hits from 2pac’s California Love and Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s Shimmy Shimmy Ya while setting the final showdown shootout to Bodycount was just the chef’s kiss for myself. 

While it might seem that we are living in a time where studios are more focused on making franchises out of established properties it was a pleasant surprise like with John Wick to get another film I’d love to see built into a franchise. At the same time if it remains a stand-alone film its still alot of fun as the jokes come quick and fast much like the action and I just had a blast from start to finish while leaving me only wanting to see what else this world had to offer.