Pool cleaner by day, fearsome vampire-hunter by night. Day Shift follows vampire-killing everyman, Bud, as he tries to secure enough money to prevent his wife and daughter from moving, but instead, ends up on the wrong side of some very powerful vampires.

Premise

In the world of Day Shift, there’s a vampire-hunting union that oversees the killing of creatures of the night. Bud (Jamie Foxx) was once a member, but was kicked out due to his reckless nature. When the film begins, Bud is a lowly pool cleaner who wants nothing more than to provide for his ex-wife (Meagan Good) and his daughter (Zion Broadnax).

When his ex informs Bud that they’ll be moving to Florida soon, Bud realizes that only way to keep them put is by scoring a huge payday. With the help of an old fried and fellow famed vampire-hunter (Snoop Dogg), Bud is able to return to the union, however, he must be accompanied by a by-the-book union rep (Dave Franco).

Cast & Characters

I’ll start off by saying that I felt like there were way too many characters in this movie. I won’t get into which characters could have been omitted or combined, but less would have been better.

We have our hero, Bud. Foxx does a great job of playing a working class man who hunts vampires on the side to help provide for his family. Foxx does bring a seriousness to the role that is appreciated and truly does give it his all regardless of the wonky premise.

Franco is entertaining as the uptight, by the book union rep, Seth. He’s initially ready to dole out every demerit he can, but as the danger escalates, and when Seth finds himself in a difficult predicament, he softens and becomes more accepting of Bud’s methods, and thus, a more sympathetic and likable character.

Karla Souza, widely known for portraying the character of Laurel in the hit ABC television series, How To Get Away With Murder, is devious and charming as the undead real estate tycoon, Audrey. She has good reason to target Bud, and Souza brings believability and delicious wickedness to the role. Souza is having fun and you can tell.

Although Snoop Dogg’s character, Big John Elliott, isn’t around much during the film, it’s fun to watch him dole out hunter wisdom to Bud and help him in his war against the vampires during the final act. There’s also a tantalizing cliffhanger with his character that could lead into a sequel.

Steve Howey and Scott Adkins play a pair of brothers and rivals of Bud’s. They’re jerks, but capable hunters. There is one action scene in particular that benefited from their presence and they helped bring some much needed comedy to the film.

Meagan Good, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Eric Lange, and Peter Stormare do a decent enough jobs in their inconsequential roles as well.

Final Thoughts

Day Shift has an intriguing and clever urban/contemporary fantasy concept. The idea of vampire-hunters having a union and being required to follow strict rules and regulations has a lot of potential and is rife for exploration. The film never explains how the general public isn’t aware of the existence of vampires, and yet, there are enough people who know to require a union for those who wish to exterminate them. I’d love to see a sequel expand on that bit of world-building. The lack of it here works against the film.

As I mentioned earlier, there were way too many characters in the film. Trying to keep up with the various characters being woven in and out of the story was a bit overwhelming at times, and I think the story would have benefited from cutting or combining some of them.

Overall, Day Shift is watchable and even enjoyable at times. Foxx and the rest of the cast do their best, but the clever concept doesn’t quite live up to its potential.

Day Shift is currently available to stream exclusively on Netflix.