There is something worth exploring in Bodycam, a movie that struggles to extend its short-concept horror idea past an hour. There’s plenty to play with in how the film stages dirty cops and a demonic threat that corrupts their attached cameras. But this found-footage format is too distracted and mystified by its own technical grab bag of modern horror tricks, never finding the thematic treats of this scenario.

Cops Bryce and Jackson are sent to investigate a spooky house and uncover plenty of scary stuff. Silent occupants covered in blood stagger around a dirty dwelling smeared with cryptic symbols. With the power out and the radio down, the uncertainty leads to one of them pulling the trigger on someone with a child. Regret sets in for one of the cops being an expectant father, where his mind quickly races to cover up this ordeal. Unfortunately, this wasn’t just another case of police brutality, but the murder of a cult where a price needs to be paid. The night continues as the cops try to cover their tracks and come to the shocking realization that they can’t escape the terrifying force that seeks to drag them into the dark abyss.

There are plenty of neat effects to appreciate on a surface level. The corrupted footage of those mesmerized by the dark symbols made for some clever usage of perspective. A sequence in the police car, set on city streets, flickering with different colors as the haunted house keeps reappearing, was genuinely creepy, with the darkness so grand at such speeds. But the movie seems reluctant to further address police brutality and hypocrisy beyond making them punchlines. A mantra among the possessed is “You take one of ours, we take one of yours.” Yeah, yeah, eye for an eye and all that jazz, but there’s got to be a better way to scramble the psyche of these messed-up cops beyond repetition of the motivations. Any attempt to explore the societal component is dashed away by frights, considering nearly every discussion shuts down when demonic mentions enter the conversation. Just when it feels like a conversation is revealing something relatable, something spooky is witnessed, and the compelling discussion is ended with “You need to leave now.” It’s an aversion more frustrating than mysterious.

Bodycam is a good idea for a horror film, but it looks as though it erased some of the juiciest footage. An abundance of corrupted footage, spooky basements, and a third-act reveal of a toothy monster can’t make up for the lack of refusing to tackle a real issue with anything more than half-thought commentary. A concept so rich in potential should’ve been explored further, or the footage cut to make a more admirable short film.