Day Shift Movie Review
Nathan Swank
August 13th, 2022
DAY SHIFT is an entertaining, fun time surrounding vampire hunting set in a modern comedic, gory horror genre… but wrapped in an extra mild sauce packet.
Sigh. DAY SHIFT should be way better, but just doesn’t quite reach anything past alright. Jamie Foxx is well suited as the star power behind a vampire slaying romp, but the film is ultimately forgettable. Dave Franco and even Snoop Dogg join in on the fun, but it all just falls a little flat.
Franco is particularly good as the buy-the-book desk guy behind-the-scenes capturing vampires who gets thrust into action in order to audit Fox’s character, Bud Jablonski. Bud is a bit of a renegade when it comes to vampire hunting, but he also clearly has skills achieving results. Franco clearly is not cut out for front line work and the pair work fairly well as buddy comedy team out in the field. Snoop Dogg plays Big John Elliott, a veteran vampire hunter who is sort of mentor who vouches for Bud. I’m sure fans will enjoy seeing the aging rapper, but he clearly is more of a gimmick casting as Snoop Dogg is never anyone other than a version of himself at all times.
There is a deeper story that involves Bud trying to make enough money in order to keep his ex-wife from moving so he can continue to see his daughter. But the vampire makes that a difficult task. It’s just as generic, boring, and ridiculous as it sounds. But I don’t want to come off too snarky here, as there are some genuinely fun and funny moments. And Foxx is truly terrific in his role. But the comedy and action just isn’t consistent enough throughout the film to make the movie necessary.
Director J.J. Perry, who has a background in stunt work and fight choreography in a few notable movies, such as JOHN WICK, THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS, and WARRIOR. For a first time director, Perry shows a lot of promise, as DAY SHIFT is not all bad. And a particular vampire hunting set piece in the middle of a suburban home is terrifically fun.
I think the difficult part for me is that I’ve seen this sort of genre done better more than 20 years ago in 1998’s John Carpenter’s Vampires starring James Woods. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not some amazing piece of filmmaking either. But it is enjoyable with a little more fun and inventiveness in its originality, even landing on Gene Siskel’s favorite films for that year.
DAY SHIFT works as mediocre entertainment, which is oversold with some strong acting talent involved. This seems to be a normal occurrence for a Netflix film.
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