7.5

Road House Delivers Action-Packed Fun with Low Stakes

By Terry Terrones  |  March 21, 2024 | 10:00am
Movies Reviews Jake Gyllenhaal
Road House Delivers Action-Packed Fun with Low Stakes
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This is not your daddy’s Road House. When examining the 2024 Prime Video film, directed by Doug Liman (The Bourne Identity, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Edge of Tomorrow) and starring Jake Gyllenhaal, it’s hard not to compare it to the 1989 original—and the version starring Patrick Swayze and directed by Rowdy Herrington couldn’t be more different from the 2024 model.

To be sure, they both follow the story of a man named Dalton who gets hired to clean up a dive bar next to a highway (AKA a road house) and battle a rich jerk lording over a small town. But that’s where the similarities end. Swayze’s Road House is an action film, but also an unintentional comedy that became beloved just as much for its subtle humor as its fight scenes. The 2024 reimagining has its tongue firmly in its cheek and is clearly in on the fun. Even though the films feel tonally different, this new Road House is exactly what you’d hope for from a new iteration of an ‘80s classic: A lot of fun and excitement without any real consequences. 

In some ways, the Road House remake diverges so much from its source material that it could have been called Face Puncher and you wouldn’t have been able to tell that it was a new version of a timeless favorite. The biggest reason for that is how Liman and Gyllenhaal craft their protagonist. In the original, Dalton—whose first name we never learn—is a professional bouncer with a philosophy degree from NYU who practices shirtless tai chi in front of his enemy’s mansion. The new Dalton, first name Elwood, is a former UFC fighter full of inner demons he hides behind a sense of humor and kind façade.

When we first meet Gyllenhaal’s Dalton, he’s getting ready for a bare-knuckle brawl in a seedy bar. Broke and sleeping in his car, he tussles for money. He’s soon enticed by a woman named Frankie (Jessica Williams) to come to Glass Key, Florida. She has a bar that has potential but needs help with some of its rougher clientele. With few options, Dalton accepts. 

The first half of Road House is surprisingly subdued, as we get to know the main character and the locals. Dalton becomes friends with a kind bookstore owner (Kevin Carroll) and his wise-beyond-her-years daughter (Hannah Love Lanier). He coaches a young bouncer (Lukas Gage), becomes acquainted with local law enforcement (“that guy” actor Joaquim de Almeida), and gets romantically involved with a doctor (Daniela Melchior).

Of course, there’re a few fights as well, but they don’t carry much weight. A number of local hooligans get thumped so pathetically, and humorously, that Dalton is kind enough to drive them to a hospital. Of these goons, Moe (Arturo Castro), is the clear standout. He’s worthless in a fight but adds plenty of comedy. 

It isn’t until Knox (Conor McGregor) shows up that Road House really takes off. He’s hired by local big shot Ben Brandt (Billy Magnussen), who is trying to keep his jailed father’s illegal schemes running but is struggling to do so. McGregor steals the film with his over-the-top role where he chews scenery with abandon and proves he’s just as good at fake fighting as the real thing. It’s almost as if Doug Liman told McGregor to watch Mr. T’s performance in Rocky III and said, “See Clubber Lang here, Conor? Do that but go twice as big.” 

With Knox on the scene, things go off the rails for Dalton. Finally given a worthy opponent, viewers will learn that the affable ex-UFC fighter has a dark side yet to be unleashed. Told through flashbacks and serious exchanges with multiple characters, we quickly learn why Dalton routinely tells people he’s not the kind of person you want to be friends with. Chaos quickly ensues, with a fire, explosions, several deaths and an epic showdown between Dalton and Knox that was so visceral it left me feeling as if I had bruises all over my body. Liman’s action experience, from Bourne in particular, is obvious. He knows how to film well-choreographed brawls. The fights never disappoint, so much so that I wish there were more of them. 

Road House reaches a satisfying, albeit expected, conclusion. The bad guy loses, the good guy rides off into the sunset, and a short mid-credits scene hints at a potential film franchise. Then the town of Glass Key returns to normal, as if Dalton never arrived. Evidently, all that fighting and death are par for the course in this town. The bar stays open no matter what. 

Even though the plot isn’t particularly deep, it doesn’t matter. Road House is just flat-out fun. It’s styled in the vein of the early Fast & Furious films but with real laughs, not ironic ones. The story may be a bit predictable and the action over-the-top, but Gyllenhaal is so enjoyable—first as wise-cracking Dalton, then as possibly psychotic Dalton—that I was invested either way. It may not take the place of the original in the pop culture zeitgeist, at least not for anyone over 45, but the reimagined Road House is the definition of an enjoyable popcorn movie. 

Director: Doug Liman
Writers: Anthony Bagarozzi, Charles Mondry 
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Conor McGregor, Billy Magnussen, Jessica Williams, Lukas Gage
Release Date: March 21, 2024 (Prime Video)

Terry Terrones is a Television Critics Association and Critics Choice Association member, licensed drone pilot, and aspiring hand model. When he’s not telling anyone who’ll listen how pain don’t hurt, you can find him hiking in the mountains of Colorado. You can follow him on Twitter @terryterrones.

 
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