Introduction
Night Patrol is a lot of things, but most of all, it is not a very good movie. That’s the most frustrating part, because buried inside this uneven, tonally confused mess is the outline of a film that could have worked. There’s an idea here, a provocative one, but it’s smothered by indecision, bad writing, and a relentless need to be “funny” at exactly the wrong moments.
At its core, Night Patrol wants to be several movies at once. A gritty crime thriller about a rogue police unit. A satire of Los Angeles gang culture. Or a full-on horror film. Perhaps it’s a social statement about policing, violence, and power. The problem is that it never commits to any of these lanes for more than a few minutes at a time. The result is a tonal whiplash that makes it feel less like a deliberate hybrid and more like a first draft that accidentally made it to the screen.
Synopsis
The ‘Night Patrol’ is a secret LAPD unit formed to combat gang violence. It quickly becomes clear, however, that this group is operating well beyond the law. Shady at best, criminal at worst. The story centers on Wazi (RJ Cyler), a member of the Crips, whose older brother Xavier (Jermaine Fowler) has crossed the line into law enforcement. That brother-versus-brother dynamic is a strong hook and briefly grounds the film emotionally. Unfortunately, it’s never explored deeply enough to matter.
Around this core, the movie spirals outward into caricature. The Crips are portrayed as believers in exaggerated Zulu mysticism, while the Bloods are depicted as paranoid conspiracy theorists. These ideas can be funny, and occasionally they are, but they’re handled with such blunt force that they feel more like random sketch comedy bits dropped into the middle of the movie.
What begins as a tense look at a rogue police force seen through the eyes of a gang member eventually drifts into absurdist humor, then abruptly pivots into outright horror. None of these shifts is earned, and none of them feels organic. Worse, the comedy is often painfully forced. This is the kind of humor that pauses, elbows the audience in the ribs, and shouts, “This is funny! Laugh now!” The jokes rarely land, and when they do, it’s almost by accident.
The exceptions are the Bloods’ conversations about conspiracy theories and some of the Crips’ mystical beliefs, which are genuinely laugh-out-loud funny. These moments hint at a sharper, more confident satire that the film never fully becomes.
Discussion
The cast does what it can, though not all of it works. Hayworth (Justin Long), a redneck cop desperate to join the Night Patrol, is spectacularly miscast. He doesn’t look the part, doesn’t sound the part, and never once feels intimidating or dangerous. It’s one of those performances where you’re constantly aware of the actor trying (and failing) to disappear into the role. Long is capable of good work, but this is not his zone. If you want to see him playing to his strengths, watch Coyotes (2025) instead.
Dermot Mulroney appears as Sarge, Hayworth’s father. His presence is baffling. It’s hard to tell what he thought this movie was, or why he agreed to be in it. CM Punk, however, is surprisingly effective as the Night Patrol’s field leader. He’s tough, intimidating, and convincingly shady. It’s one of the few characters who feels like he belongs in this world. RJ Cyler, as Wazi, is also quite good. Given a stronger script, he could have delivered something genuinely compelling.
Most of the actors in Night Patrol are solid. It’s the material that consistently lets them down. And that material is the film’s biggest problem. The writing is bad. It’s flat, forced, and often nonsensical. The story feels constructed rather than discovered, and nearly everyone comes off looking foolish, cops and gangs alike.
Further Analysis
There’s no real bite to the satire in Night Patrol and no real depth to the drama. Even decent acting performances can’t rescue dialogue this clumsy. Ryan Prows’ direction also doesn’t help matters. It’s honestly difficult to tell whether the wild tonal shifts are intentional or the result of uncertainty behind the camera.
At times, the film feels like it was shot by committee, with the tone changing depending on the day or which producer happened to be present. The camera work often resembles mediocre network television: choppy, flat, and visually uninspired. Prows desperately needed to decide what kind of movie he was making and commit to it. Instead, Night Patrol feels like three different films fighting each other for control.
Conclusion
Night Patrol isn’t completely without merit, and that’s precisely why it’s so disappointing. There are flashes of something better: moments of humor that work, performances that click, and ideas that briefly come into focus. In another universe, with a tighter script and a clearer vision, this could have been a sharp, funny, and maybe even provocative film.
As it stands, the film is a near miss. The acting is mostly solid, but the writing is terrible. Justin Long is badly miscast. And the film never figures out who it’s for. If you’re interested in spotting a director who might do something good down the line, this is worth a look as an early misstep. For all its noise and ambition, Night Patrol was simply Nighty Night.
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