You can’t deny Netflix has some eclectic taste with their distribution. Supernatural thrillers, political dramas, comedies about selling double-glazed windows. They’ve got it all. And by branching into so many genres and styles, they’ve started to attract the real A-list industry giants. 2 years ago, would you imagine Will Smith in a Netflix-released fantasy? Probably not. But Bright has turned a lot of expectations on their head. This urband fantasy (which is a genre there simply will never be enough of) takes aspects of crime drama, action-thrillers, and some classic high fantasy, and blends them incredibly well for a terrific bit of world-building, wrapped up in a nice little “survive the night” package.

“I don’t fuck with no fairies.”

Bright finds Officer Ward (Will Smith), partnered with the LAPD’s first Orc cop, Nick Jacoby (Joel Edgerton). In this alternate modern world, Humans, Orcs, Elves, and other creatures have been living together throughout history. Elves seemingly run the world through wealth and finance, with Orcs being ostracized as second class citizens for siding with the “Dark Lord” thousands of years ago. Responding to a 911 call, the reluctant partners discover a grisly crime scene, centered around a magic wand, a weapon of mass destruction. The pair soon find themselves hunted by cops, gangsters, rogue Elves, and federal agents all looking to secure the wand for their own ends.

From the start, let’s lay all the cards on the table. It seems like a lot of critics were lining up to shit on this movie before Netflix even released it. With director, David Ayer’s previous flick Suicide Squad infuriating fans and critics alike, it’s no wonder he’s a bit of a pariah right now. But the fact of the matter is, with the right material, and the right level of control, Ayer can deliver quality work, and intense action (see Fury, Training Day, Dark Blue). Surprisingly, putting aside its fantasy backdrop, Bright has way more in common with his previous cop stories than with Lord Of The Rings or Harry Potter. The story is a very standard buddy cop setup. New partners don’t like each other. 911 call. Gruesome scene. Car chase, gun fight, bonding time over family stories, yada yada yada. It’s Lethal Weapon, with centaurs.

Now, This Guy has one big thing he looks for with this kind of “alternate present” type stories. The writers have a lot of world building to do to make the world seem NORMAL. Far too often, the fantastical elements of the world seem to far outside the norm, and it makes the whole thing feel fabricated. They can never make the fantasy characters seem like they’ve always been there. Bright doesn’t fall into this trap. We see enough Elven architecture, Orc graffiti, and see enough creatures walking the streets that it just seems like another day in LA. When characters talk race relations, they mention wars dating back thousands of years. At one point, there’s a totally casual shot of the LA skyline with a fucking dragon just gliding around. All this helps to make the urban fantasy world come alive and feel authentic and put together.

“Once with the Dark Lord, always with the Dark Lord.”

The casting is great. Smith is back in good form as a haggard cop dealing with money issues and a worried wife. Edgerton, who’s proven himself as not only a tremendous actor, but a guy with a true mind for storytelling, is great (and unrecognizable) as Nick the Orc. He approaches the role with the right amount of rookie naivete and enthusiasm, as well as the sadness that comes with being cast out by his fellow Orcs for being seen essentially as a “race traitor.” Noomi Rapace plays the villain, a rogue Elf named Leilah, intent on fucking up Ward and Jacoby’s night. She and her thugs make the Elves feel scary and powerful, as we watch them tear through gangsters and SWAT teams with grace and brute force.

The greatest thing about Bright is that while straddling multiple genres and styles, it also mentions to sidestep a few of more annoying tropes. Ward calls his wife when he realizes he’s in danger and tells her to get the hell outta Dodge. What happens? She grabs her daughter and takes off. No questions asked, no chance of a kidnapping and hostage situation. The Elf federal agent hot on Ward and Jacoby’s trail? Is he up to some nefarious agenda? Nope, just an agent doing his job. It’s actually refreshing.

“Only a Bright can use a wand.”

Overall, Bright had a lot stacked against it. Ayer has a real critical flop weighing down his resume. Smith isn’t the box office powerhouse he once was, and honestly, urban fantasy is just tremendously underappreciated. But, in spite of all these obstacles, it’s a well told, tightly written crime drama, with some great fantasy world building. It’s well worth a watch for fans of either genre, and is more than deserving of a followup, or even a series.

This Guy Scores: 7.5/10