A police officer discovers that a task force comprised of vampires organises an attack on the neighbourhood where he grew up.
A messed-up compass! So, Night Patrol, right? A film about… well… dirty cops, conspiratorial gangs, white demons, Zulus, black magic – throw them all into a blender and that’s roughly the experience. From the very beginning, the film signals that it does not take itself seriously and, crucially, does not expect you to do so either. The poster alone screams B-movie energy – and let’s be clear: B-movie is often synonymous with entertainment. The real question is what kind of entertainment this aims to be.
Co-writer/director Ryan Prows attempts to weaponise Zulu ancestry against a white satanic force while simultaneously gesturing toward sociopolitical commentary. The problem? Its moral compass feels thoroughly scrambled. No group emerges particularly dignified or thoughtfully portrayed, and the film’s approach to race is, at best, careless and, at worst, insulting. Hopefully, no actual Zulu will ever watch this.
Dialogue is saturated with the N-word, while an almost relentless stream of rap tracks runs throughout the film… with the N-word. Rather than creating texture or authenticity, the repetition becomes numbing, even distracting. What might have been intended as gritty or provocative instead risks reinforcing the very stereotypes it seems vaguely interested in critiquing. The portrayal of African-American characters repeatedly leans into familiar and tired imagery – the ghetto, the thug, the gangster – without sufficient nuance or subversion to justify the choice. Except for Xavier (Jermaine Fowler), the only decent character.
Tonally, the script struggles to find its footing. It is not funny to function as satire, nor sharp enough to sustain serious engagement. As a result, the film floats in an awkward middle space where neither mode fully lands.
For comparison, look at the work of Joe Begos and films like Christmas Bloody Christmas (2022): https://kaygazpro.com/christmas-bloody-christmas-2022/ and VFW (2019): https://kaygazpro.com/vfw-2019-action-crime-horror/ – genre cinema that embraces excess while remaining energetic, self-aware, and, importantly, not alienating in its provocations. And then there is Justin Long, who unfortunately continues a streak of projects that fail to showcase his strengths.
Messy, provocative, occasionally energetic – but ultimately a film whose compass spins a little too wildly to fully guide its audience.
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