Road House: A Critical Analysis

Post by **Cail** » Tue Jul 21, 2009 9:24 pm

It's tempting to look at Road House, the 1989 Patrick Swayze vehicle as the greatest film ever made. Hyperbole like that usually gets responses like, "What about Big Trouble in Little China, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai, Tapeheads, and Pootie Tang?". To which I would have to respond....."touché".

But clearly Road House deserves a spot with such heady company. Through every viewing I'm increasingly impressed with what director Rowdy Herrington, screenwriter David Lee Henry, and (of course) Patrick Swayze were able to accomplish in 114 minutes.

But first, a little history. In 1989, I was a film student in college. Oddly, this film never came up....surprising, as Point Break (Swayze's last badass film) garnered quite a bit of pre-release buzz. Swayze had a sketchy film history. Awesome in Red Dawn, lame in Dirty Dancing, and a pussy in Uncommon Valor. Suffice it to say, a film starring a dancing bouncer at a honky-tonk didn't really appeal to me, so I never watched it. In fact, from 1989 until 2006, I managed to completely avoid this film, even though I spent 3 years working at a video store (yes, I was Randall). At some point I did see Next of Kin, which is a deeply flawed, but supremely watchable film.

But throughout that time, a funny thing happened.....Road House started becoming part of our nation's shared consciousness. I started hearing lines from the film quoted all over the place (there isn't a high-school wrestler alive that hasn't uttered the phrase, "pain don't hurt"). So in late 2006, when I suddenly found myself single again with a ton of time on my hands, I found myself watching the movie.

I'm not going to summarize it, just make a couple of observations.

-This may be one of the best films you could show someone to explain the '80s. Subtle, it ain't, and neither were the '80s. The characters (by and large) are broad, stereotypical strokes, yet they resonate with all of us. Swayze's Dalton is Shane for the new generation. There's the kind-hearted doctor, the troubled shopkeeper, the sagely farmer, the town baddie.....All familiar, and all present and accounted for.

-Swayze carries this film on his muscular, shaven shoulders. George Lucas is Shakespeare compared to David Lee Henry when it comes to writing dialog (see the aforementioned "pain don't hurt"), but Swayze not only manages to read the words on the page, he sells them to the audience far better than a lesser actor could manage.

-Two words....Monster Truck. I'm a firm believer that there hasn't been a film made that wouldn't be exponentially better with the inclusion of at least one monster truck. Seriously, how awesome would it have been for Malcolm McDowell to pull up to an orgy in a monster truck in Caligula? Sure, it'd make some films a little creepier (Lolita), and it would present some narrative challenges in others (The Abyss and Event Horizon), but quite frankly, Event Horizon was so damn confusing, the addition of a monster truck really wouldn't make it any more so.

-Direction. Rowdy Herrington really didn't have much to do, and I'm thinking, "more Swayze" was pretty much his philosophy. Good on him, because it works. When the kindly old farmer (with the pants-crappingly awesome loft that Dalton lives in) spies Dalton doing his half-nude zen/yoga workout by a pond, the camera lingers disturbingly on Swayze's body, and even more disturbingly so on the farmer's face. The movie could have gone in several directions at that point....Be thankful it's about bar fighting and not anything else.

-Sam Elliott. Just impossible to make a bad film with him in it, though there's not much of him in the first hour (thank God for the monster truck). Oddly, Sammy looks older in this movie than he does now.

-Conflict.....Not just the fighting, the conflict within Dalton. He's a bouncer.....With a philosophy degree from NYU. He's ecstatic to rent a room with..."no phone, no TV, no conditioned air"......But he drives a Mercedes. He's a pretty boy.......But he can kick everyone's ass.

Now sure, people will say that Point Break is a better movie in every way. Nah......Point Break is great (even though it has an equally jaw-droppingly bad script), and except for the awesomeness quotient of their names, Kathryn Bigelow is a far superior director compared to Rowdy Herrington. But Point Break has two major strikes against it; the inclusion of Keanu Reeves, and the exclusion of any monster trucks.

Much like the Glickenhaus masterpieces (Sam Elliott's Shakedown, Ken Wahl's The Soldier, Scott Glenn's Slaughter of the Innocents, and Chris Walken's McBain), movies like this defy logic and common sense. They're just not made any more, as there's a need for some sort of resolution at the end of the final reel.

Quite frankly, I'd love to see a remake done with Swayze playing Elliott's role.

No way it'd kick as much ass though.

Post by **SoulBiter** » Tue Jul 21, 2009 9:45 pm

Road House - One of my favorite movies. Even though Ive seen this one a hundred times (or more) If Im browsing the channels and this is on, I catch myself draw to watch it again.

Damn good summary Cail.

Post by **AjK** » Tue Jul 21, 2009 9:54 pm

Now that I have returned from nominating Cail's review for a 2009 Watchy...

This is one of those movies that is rerun on TV here in the USA (and seeping into our cultural consciousness) more often than I believe anyone realizes or is willing to admit. It is indeed a classic. Some of my favorite lines (and there are too many to recount):

"Damn that hurts, don't it?"

"I'd be fine if you'd get off me."

"Yawl got insurance, dontcha?"

and the somewhat overrated

"Polar bear fell on me."

... and as far as I can tell, Swayze's girlfriend's red and white tablecloth dress induces laughter from every female who has ever watched the movie.

Post by **lorin** » Tue Jul 21, 2009 10:55 pm

AjK wrote: ... and as far as I can tell, Swayze's girlfriend's red and white tablecloth dress induces laughter from every female who has ever watched the movie.

and her absolutley HUGE bug eye glasses.( but all doctors are required to wear huge glasses)

Swayze was excellent in City of Joy, (yes, it's a chick flick) one of my favorite movies and he is pretty damn good in The Beast (definitely not a chick flick).

I enjoyed seeing Jeff Healey in the movie. He was really good and would have liked to see him have a larger musical part.

Post by **Cail** » Tue Jul 21, 2009 11:04 pm

AjK wrote:This is one of those movies that is rerun on TV here in the USA (and seeping into our cultural consciousness) more often than I believe anyone realizes or is willing to admit. It is indeed a classic.

Absolutely. It's become an American touchstone, like The Wizard of Oz and Gone With the Wind.

And yeah, I'll stay up way too late on a work night to watch it if I see it's on TV, and I own the damn Blue-Ray!

Post by **Fist and Faith** » Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:30 am

Ah! This is second only to Billy Jack for being both the most ridiculous and the coolest thing ever filmed. Excellent review, Cail.

AjK wrote:... and as far as I can tell, Swayze's girlfriend's red and white tablecloth dress induces laughter from every female who has ever watched the movie.

I had a far different reaction.

Post by **lorin** » Wed Jul 22, 2009 4:32 am

Fist and Faith wrote:Ah! This is second only to Billy Jack for being both the most ridiculous and the coolest thing ever filmed. Excellent review, Cail.

AjK wrote:... and as far as I can tell, Swayze's girlfriend's red and white tablecloth dress induces laughter from every female who has ever watched the movie.
I had a far different reaction.

you liked Billy jack? it practically turned my high school days upside down. I was determined to make love to billy jack and produce the first irish hasidic american indian rabbi ninja

Post by **Fist and Faith** » Wed Jul 22, 2009 10:59 am

I absolutely love that movie! I owned it on laser disc, back in the day. And I own the dvd box set with it, Trial of Billy Jack, and Billy Jack Goes to Washington. Trial is very bad. Washington wishes it could be half as good as Trial. Born Losers isn't included.

AND, I own the paperback book!

Found it entirely out of the blue in a used bookstore, as I was browsing. I had no idea there was such a book.

Post by **Cail** » Wed Jul 22, 2009 12:23 pm

Another truly amazing thing about Road House is that there's no decent villain. Brad Wesley, while certainly a bad guy, isn't a top-tier baddie (think Hans Gruber or Khan Noonien Singh), and Jimmy, while another pretty-boy badass, certainly isn't a decent foil.

In fact, in all the other movies I mentioned above (Big Trouble in Little China, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai, Tapeheads, and Pootie Tang), there's a strong, coherent bad guy. Look at Lithgow's magnificent portrayal of D. Emil Lizardo in BB. Now there's an antagonist you can get behind.

But not so in Road House.....Again, Swayze does all the heavy lifting himself. Like the listed films, Road House succeeds because it's lead actor has an almost fanatical dedication and devotion to the character and the script, regardless of any narrative challenges presented.

Whereas Kurt Russell played Jack Burton with scenery-chewing gusto, and Peter Weller played Buckaroo Banzai with a detached coolness, you can almost imagine Swayze practicing his acceptance speech to the Academy he played the role of Dalton so straight and seriously.

Post by **AjK** » Wed Jul 22, 2009 1:23 pm

lorin wrote:I enjoyed seeing Jeff Healey in the movie. He was really good and would have liked to see him have a larger musical part.

Quite a musician. Hard to believe he died just short of turning 42. That is too short of a run IMO (says the 48 year old.)

lorin wrote:I was determined to make love to billy jack and produce the first irish hasidic american indian rabbi ninja

Wow that would be awesome. If it meant getting an irish hasidic american indian rabbi ninja I would make love to Billy Jack! *
[ * Okay okay I wouldn't really do that but you get my point.]

Fist and Faith wrote:And I own the dvd box set with it, Trial of Billy Jack, and Billy Jack Goes to Washington. Trial is very bad. Washington wishes it could be half as good as Trial. Born Losers isn't included.

Cail wrote:Another truly amazing thing about Road House is that there's no decent villain. Brad Wesley, while certainly a bad guy, isn't a top-tier baddie (think Hans Gruber or Khan Noonien Singh), and Jimmy, while another pretty-boy badass, certainly isn't a decent foil.

Hans is indeed one of my "all-timers". Sam Elliot's character was my favorite in the movie. "Mind your own business ... dad!"

Post by **High Lord Tolkien** » Wed Jul 22, 2009 2:51 pm

Your review is amazing, Cail. The-the way you explained it I mean, I could never do anything like that. That was something. I mean, the reason people dismiss my reviews like I'm nothing is because I'm nothing.
All I can add to it is "ditto".
Several times while reading it I just want to stop, raise one arm above my head and yell "Wolverines!".

YouTube · Post by **Menolly** » Wed Jul 22, 2009 2:59 pm

lorin wrote:
Fist and Faith wrote:Ah! This is second only to Billy Jack for being both the most ridiculous and the coolest thing ever filmed. Excellent review, Cail.
you liked Billy jack? it practically turned my high school days upside down. I was determined to make love to billy jack and produce the first irish hasidic american indian rabbi ninja

Having never seen Road House, but counting Billy Jack among my all time favorite films (I was 11 when I saw it in the theater, lorin. I would have probably felt the same as you, if I had been a little deeper into puberty at the time), this is a big sell to me to rent it.

Do you honestly think I'll like Road House, Fist?
I know, I know. Take your time replying.
I still haven't seen Amadeus, even with your recommendation...

Post by **Cagliostro** » Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:04 pm

High Lord Tolkien wrote:Your review is amazing, Cail. The-the way you explained it I mean, I could never do anything like that. That was something. I mean, the reason people dismiss my reviews like I'm nothing is because I'm nothing.
All I can add to it is "ditto".
Several times while reading it I just want to stop, raise one arm above my head and yell "Wolverines!".

"Wolverines" indeed, sir...."Wolverines" indeed.

Post by **wayfriend** » Wed Jul 22, 2009 8:40 pm

Any movie with the Jeff Healey Band in it kicks ass.

Post by **danlo** » Wed Jul 22, 2009 11:32 pm

Elliot and Healey made the movie. Even though I like Point Break better-every time Road House is on I can't stop watching it-the same thing happens with Force 10 from Navarone, for some reason...

Post by **Fist and Faith** » Thu Jul 23, 2009 1:50 am

The big fight between Dalton and Jimmy is possibly my all-time favorite hand-to-hand fight in a movie. All out, no posturing, just two guys trying their best to erase each other from existence.

Hey, nobody mentioned this line yet:

"Do you ever win a fight?"

"Nobody ever wins a fight."

This guy's deep, folks!

Post by **Cail** » Thu Jul 23, 2009 2:04 am

Fist and Faith wrote:The big fight between Dalton and Jimmy is possibly my all-time favorite hand-to-hand fight in a movie. All out, no posturing, just two guys trying their best to erase each other from existence.

I'll disagree Fist. The fight between Roddy Piper and Keith David in They Live is the best fistfight ever filmed. But the Dalton vs. Jimmy fight is incredible.

Here it is...

But this is still the best....

Post by **Fist and Faith** » Thu Jul 23, 2009 2:25 am

Oh! I forgot! I was looking for a picture of Kelly Lynch in that red & white checkered dress, and found lots of nude pix of her! So I looked for videos. Warm Summer Rain is, apparently, one heck of a movie!!!

Post by **High Lord Tolkien** » Thu Jul 23, 2009 3:34 am

Cail wrote: But the Dalton vs. Jimmy fight is incredible.

Here it is...

Just a cheaper extended version of any Kirk (TOS) fight.
And they had more dramatic music in Star Trek.

Post by **Montresor** » Thu Jul 23, 2009 5:11 am

And I'm surprised no-one has yet quoted the immortal line: "I used to fuck guys like you in prison".

Kevin's Watch

Kevin's Watch

Road House: A Critical Analysis

Road House: A Critical Analysis