One genre of films I love to watch is supernatural, especially the ones featuring vampires and werewolves. I think I've watched many vampire films, except for a few boring ones. I saw this film on my streaming site sometime after its release last year but seeing the face of Jamie Foxx on the poster was a total turn-off.
I'm not one of his fans. I get easily influenced by the cast in a film like many movie lovers. I can't help it —it's like judging a book by its cover. In this instance, it's judging the movie by the film poster.
However, I read some reviews on Hive that were encouraging and since no film attracted my attention today on the streaming site, I settled for Day Shift (2022). Nothing captures an audience's attention like a fast-paced, action-packed film. Day Shift has these elements in good doses from the beginning to the end.
This film begins with a scene where Bud Jablonski (played by Jamie Foxx) pretends he is on pool cleaning duty, enters a big house and engages in a tough fighting scene with an elderly vampire. After he kills the vampire and her companion, he extracts their teeth.
He drives by his daughter's school to pick her up. His feisty daughter complains that he is late. When he takes his daughter home, his ex-wife (played by Meagan Good) informs him she's taking their daughter away to another town unless he comes up with some money for her tuition fees and other stuff.
Bud Jablonski takes the extracted teeth to a pawn seller who tries to rip him off. This forces Bud to reach out to his hunter mentor played by Snoop Dogg so he could be accepted back into the Union.
The Union's boss is a little difficult but he is convinced to take back Bud and make him work the day shift if he takes Seth, a Union supervisor (played by Dave Franco), along with him.
In another scene, we are introduced to a powerful and rich vampire, Audrey San Fernando who disguises herself as an estate realtor going around to acquire properties for other vampires. She discovers the body of the elderly vampire and commits to finding the killer —Jamie Foxx. What is her connection to the elderly vampire? Will these two characters succeed in their missions?
Review
Day Shift is a fast-paced, violent and action-packed movie that follows the story of a vampire hunter, played by Jamie Foxx, as he juggles his dual life. The movie is filled with intense battles and graphic violence as Foxx's character and his team of hunters take on vampires.
This film features a diverse cast and a liberal use of profanity, so I'll advise that children should not be allowed to watch it. But in general, it's not a bad film. It's a perfect blend of humour and absurdity, thanks in large part to Jamie Foxx's performance.
I enjoyed the action scenes. They are a mix of intense martial arts and gunfire. There is some allusion to the use of silver and garlic to combat the vamps. Not all films follow these popular myths. Some films say garlic and holy water work best while some display that beheading or a stake to the heart finishes them off.
Jamie Foxx, A Vampire Hunter?
I have never been a fan of Jamie Foxx hence my reluctance to watch this film after its release but I admit his performance is outstanding. He makes an impressive vampire hunter. The way he fights, his expertise and use of guns and ammunition display his badass-ness. His role as a loving father who fights scary, murdering bloodsuckers to save his family is also fitting.
Another interesting action part of Day Shift is the car chase! Jamie Foxx expertly handled his old pickup vehicle to beat the vampires with better vehicles in an action-packed chase.
The scene I enjoyed the most was the one where Jamie and his protégé team up with two vampire hunters to take down a hive in a big mansion. It was a delight to watch. All of these actions are complemented by the right amount of gore. So if you have a thing against gore, I'll advise you not to watch this film.
Other Cast Members
Another cast member I commend for his performance is Dave Franco. In my opinion, he is adorable as that naive vampire hunter that pees his pants every time (spoiler: one time, he shits himself) when there is an attack. I like that he overcomes his fear and becomes a fearless hunter, probably because of the vampirism in his blood (a twist!)
Snoop plays the part of Jamie Foxx's hunter mentor and his costume of leather vests, flowing black coat and hat makes him look like a badass hunter from an old western movie. Also, Karla Souza was great in her performance of Audrey San Fernando, the villain vampire. I'll say the cast was impressive.
The cinematography, settings and visual effects were not bad. I enjoyed seeing the landscape and sceneries of Los Angeles.
In summary, Day Shift is a thrilling and action-packed supernatural film that showcases intense battles and graphic violence. The diverse cast, blend of humour and use of a variety of vampire-fighting techniques make the film an entertaining watch. If you're a fan of supernatural movies and can handle gore, this one is definitely worth watching.
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Other images are screenshots from the movie