WWE star CM Punk‘s new film is about vampires, but it also tells a story about a real-life issue that many people in the United States face every day.
Night Patrol is about an LAPD officer who discovers his department’s task force is hiding a dark secret: they are actually a group of vampires targeting residents of a local housing project. On its surface, the film is about vampires, but it also addresses systemic racism and law enforcement overstepping the bounds of the rules they are supposed to enforce fairly.
WrestleZone Managing Editor Bill Pritchard spoke with Night Patrol director Ryan Prows about CM Punk’s role in the film, as well as why horror films seem to be a good medium to address racism. Other films, like Candyman and Sinners, have addressed these issues in the past, and Prows believes using a movie like Night Patrol allows an artist to address these sensitive topics and have the message resonate on a deeper level.
Ryan Prows on Night Patrol, addressing racism and police brutality
“You can kind of couch it in a little bit, make it a little bit more palatable. I mean, you’re literally talking about like the worst things in human nature in the world today, all of that sort of stuff,” Prows explained. “But hopefully making it not a slog to get through, or there’s some entertainment to it, some kind of thrill ride or whatever. I mean, the movie is very loud and what it’s saying. I think it’s very on the cuff, but hopefully, it’s not preachy or soapboxing.
“We’re still able to kind of tell the story that we want to tell and bring that through. Again, the genre, like vampire stuff in general, is very malleable and kind of can stretch to whatever metaphor you want it to fit,” Prows continued. “But then also, hopefully these characters connect you to the narrative itself or the wider sort of point you’re trying to get into. I think it resonates a bit more. [When] we watch movies or go tell stories, it’s stuff that you can then feel deeper than if I was just giving a speech about how horrible police violence and corruption is.”
Ryan Prows highlights other challenges they faced on the set of Night Patrol
Prows wanted Night Patrol to be as authentic as possible, so they filmed on the streets of Los Angeles. In addition to getting neighborhood clearances, the film crew also had to get the local communities on board, which included night shoots with a lot of (loud and gory) practical effects.
“[The communities] were so supportive,” Prows said. “It was not ideal that we’re, you know, two in the morning on someone’s roof, putting a light up there while they got to go to work the next morning or whatever. We didn’t want to do it if we weren’t going to be able to film in L.A. But the fact that we were able to film L.A. and everyone kind of knew the importance, that our heart was really in it, [meant a lot].”
There was a lot of work in making sure people knew what they were filming, too.
“All day, we’re prepping everything,” he explained. “‘OK, you’re going to walk over here and the gunfire is going to go off here. And the like blood geysers going to be over here’ or whatever. And everyone’s just sort of like, ‘Oh, OK.’ So again, it was just trying to make sure everybody sort of knew what we were doing and what area we were in so that little kids would not like come on to an awful scene and mess them up.
“I know, though, if I was a kid there, I would have loved that,” Prows added. “And then you couldn’t have gotten rid of me while they were doing blood gags and stuff.”
Night Patrol is in theatres now.
Read More: CM Punk Believes He Was Born To Play A Villain
