Day Shift – Another Fun Yet Disposable Action Comedy (Early Review)

Ever since the Twilight franchise dominated pop culture in the late 2000s, the vampire genre has slowly been trickling away from those vampires and that tone. Sometimes viewers just want something silly and doesn’t take itself too seriously so they can simply turns their brains off and surrender for 2ish hours. The summer is just perfect for films of that ilk and Day Shift is no different. This action comedy is takes the vampire genre in a different direction, resulting in an incredibly silly watch that is nonetheless entertaining in spite of its issues. Set in the summer-soaked Los Angeles area and leaving plenty of blood and gore in its wake, the film is not a thinker by any means and a mindless breeze that sets up an interesting world that could very well lead to more. Though it may not all work in terms of action and comedy, the star power of Jamie Foxx leads the way. The plot is on the generic side and the villains are thin which was par for the course but his dynamic with Dave Franco make it a fun ride while Snoop Dog delivers in a limited scene-stealing role.

Day Shift follows a man named Bud Jablonski (Foxx), a working-class pool cleaner looking to provide for his 8-year-old daughter Paige (Zion Broadnax). However, this job was merely a front for his real job as a vampire hunter for which he was really good at. A lone wolf, he developed a reputation but that reputation also ruffled some feathers with the secretive worldwide union of vampire hunters that protected the human race from their war with vampires from the shadows. Keeping his family life and career separate for the longest time, it was inevitable that they would somehow converge and sooner or later they did. Desperate and looking for a means to keep his family together, Jablonski turned to the union that had once exiled him for help. Apprehensive, he was assigned a knowledgeable yet inexperienced union representative named Seth (Franco) who was tasked to watch over him in case he screwed up. That being said, things did not necessarily go according to plan as far as the union was concerned. Lacking field experience, Seth certainly got some following Jablonski around.

The ensuing dynamic was easily the best part of Day Shift. Whether or not they were willing to admit it, they needed each other. As Jablonski learned to work with others, Seth was learning to come out of his shell more. Suffice it to say that the latter came with some complications along the way which were as hilarious as they were endearing. Though Jablonski’s character arcs was a conventional one, Seth’s character arc, while not unexpected in any way, was still compelling to watch. Ultimately, the two needed to work together as the former found himself the target of a powerful vampire named Audrey (Souza) who was looking for revenge. The vampires of this film were wide-ranging but she still managed to bring them together. A potential gamechanger for the vampires saw them find a way to survive in sunlight thus making for a different dynamic as they could essentially show up anywhere at anytime. In the end, this was basically a means for the film to shift away from a vampire film and devolve into more of a generic action film. While disappointing as a whole, the action provided some decent mindless entertainment and a lot of violence worthy of its R rating.

Day Shift may be thin and predictable but in spite of that, the film is still a blast to watch, harkening back to the mindless fare of the 1990s. What keeps it all together is the aforementioned dynamic of Foxx and Franco as Jablonski and Seth. Though the role of Jablonski isn’t necessarily that much of a stretch for Foxx, his chemistry with Franco helped lift the film through. More than just the comic relief, Franco’s likability and relatability made for a compelling window into the film’s world of vampires and vampire hunters. While not a new concept by any means, his awkwardness paired with Jablonski’s assuredness and overconfidence created plenty of fun moments and moments of growth. Souza was a decent villain as Audrey, however, she was essentially an afterthought. Finally, Snoop Dog is basically Snoop Dog as Big John Elliott which was enough to make an impression in limited screen time.

At the end of the day, Day Shift is merely another fun yet disposable action comedy that may not reinvent the wheel but does more than enough to entertain.

still courtesy of Netflix

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.