Last August, Jamie Foxx headlined Netflix’s blockbuster project power, which took the standard trappings of the superhero genre and tried to turn them into something new, with the end result becoming one of the most-watched original movies on the platform. Almost exactly one year later, the Academy Award winner returns to take center stage in Day shiftthat you’re trying to do pretty much the same thing with the vampire movie, but your mileage may vary depending on how successful you were the second time around.

There is plenty of intriguing talent attached to the film on both sides of the camera, with debut filmmaker JJ Perry hoping to follow in the footsteps of john wickby Chad Stahelski Dead Pool 2by David Leitch, and Extraction‘s Sam Hargrave to make the leap from stunt coordination to directing, while the aforementioned Stahelski is also listed as one of the producers, the screenplay is co-credited with John Wick: Chapter 3‘ Y army of the deadby Shay Hatten, with Wick, Atomic Blonde, No oneY Bullet train The production company 87Eleven participates, which is an experience of assembly of action.

So, as you might imagine, the set pieces are comfortably the highlights of a confused genre-bender that relies too heavily on superfluous plot beats and largely unfunny attempts at comedy, wasting a stacked cast in the process. However, it ticks enough boxes to serve as an entertaining enough viewing on Friday night, even if it’s highly unlikely that anyone is talking about it. Day shift a month from now.

Perhaps the craziest thing about the entire movie (revolving around a clandestine cabal of vampire hunters trying to thwart a clandestine takeover by hordes of blood-sucking undead) is that the cool and collected Foxx He plays a guy named Bud Jablonski, who is in dire need of cash to keep his estranged wife and daughter from picking up sticks and moving to Florida.

Bud needs $10,000 fast, so he asks Snoop Dogg’s Big John Elliot for a favor to get him back in good hands with the vampire hunter syndicate, led by Mike Seeger, played by Eric Lange. However, Dave Franco’s Seth is assigned to watch over the reckless killer of garlic-fearing creatures to make sure he’s not welcomed back into the fold.

Inevitably, things turn complicated when a seemingly innocuous murder ends up catching the attention of Audrey, the vampire/real estate mogul played by Karla Souza, who also wants to buy as many properties as possible in the San Fernando Valley to stealthily . she has her minions dwell right under everyone’s nose, using a widely banned form of sunscreen so her minions can emerge during the day.

If you’re thinking that’s a great plot for a 114-minute action movie that’s been built and sold largely on the odd couple’s comedy, Foxx returns to his heroic groove and Snoop Dogg wields a massive Gatling gun to mow down. lots of vampires, then you might be surprised to learn that we haven’t even mentioned Natasha Liu Bordizzo’s neighbor with a secret Heather, Peter Stormare’s pawnshop owner Troy, or Scott Adkins and Steve Howey as a pair of independent brothers. who kick butt hunters

That’s the biggest problem with Day shift like an everything; the choreography, lurid violence, and body horror are as exhilarating and impeccably staged as you’d expect from someone with director Perry’s experience, and he has a bright future ahead of him as the orchestrator of on-screen violence, but pretty much every quick faces and the blunt pace is immediately followed by scene after scene of tedious exposition, or detours into subplot territory the film could have comfortably dispensed with.

We’ve all seen the “caring dad trying to do what’s best for his family before they get kidnapped by their enemies as a result of the secret profession they never knew about” a thousand times before, but shedding fangs and an aversion to silver. in the mix does nothing Day shift feel particularly new. There are a couple of good jokes, but when the running gags are largely limited to Franco peeing his pants and union charters being tossed around, it gets tiresome real quick.

There are interesting twists on established vampire lore, but none of them come across as interesting or engaging as they should be; there are multiple different species of vampires, fangs are removed after death and sold for cash, non-union kills have to be paid for on the black market, each race has its own strengths and weaknesses, etc., but everything it’s just a showcase for another weapon-laden sugar blast of contorted bodies, blood spatter, and decapitation.

If the story had been cut back significantly, with various elements stripped or removed altogether, then Day shift It would have been an absolute triumph. As it stands, however, it has more than enough to keep Netflix subscribers happy for a couple of hours, while also leaving the door open for a sequel should the viewing numbers live up to expectations. .

That said, in the grand scheme of things, it’s a missed opportunity to bring action, comedy, horror, and vampires together in the cinematic blender and create something completely new, exciting, and fresh. Instead, it’s a comforting soup of flavors you’ve tasted before, of which you’ve definitely tasted better.