Road House 1989 & 2024

[Wade Hampton]

The Road House movies are a guilty pleasure of mine; normally I don’t care for films with lots of fight scenes, but the Road House movies are really Westerns set in the modern day. And I’m a big fan of Westerns.

The 1989 original has a lot going for it, from Patrick Swayze as the lead to Sam Elliott as his buddy Wade Garrett to the great, late blind Canadian guitarist Jeff Healy, who plays the leader of the house band.

For this new version I was wondering how the filmmakers were possibly going to replace Elliott or Healy, and the answer is that they didn’t. In this version there’s no Wade Garrett character and instead of one guy leading the music there’s a succession of different bands. Good bands, too, I should add.

Jake Gyllenhaal plays the Patrick Swayze role in the remake, and does a good job. He clearly did some serious weight training to get in shape for the role.

The single biggest change is the addition of a maniacal bad guy played UFC champion Conor McGregor. I don’t know whether McGregor can act, per se, but his screen presence and charisma are off the charts. He’s riveting, and absolutely steals every scene he’s in.

Anyway, both the original and the remake are available to watch on Amazon Prime. I hadn’t seen the original in decades, but am happy to report that it’s held up over the years. And the new one is definitely worth seeing, too, if this is the sort of movie that you like.


Wade Hampton Miller

[RP]

I enjoyed both and am glad that the '24 version wasn't merely a redo with different actors. In my mind, both stand on their own virtues...

[FrankHudson]

Oh Wade, you and I both have a fondness for the original movie. I find the original unbelievable in so many ways. Even the idea of a not particularly big Patrick Swayze as this one-man army that instantly impresses the brutes. And unlike you I'm not a huge fan of fights in movies, partly because I used to work in an ER dealing with real injuries from real fights, not the Roadrunner/Wilie Coyote kind of slapstick we so often see on screen. The original movie even has a few slow spots near the end as they work out some way to tie up what passes for a plot.

I'll even admit I resort to MST3K quipping while watching.

So: it should be a boring, unendurable film. And it's not. Swayze's commitment to the role, Eliott's character, most of the rest of the cast, really commit to the thing, maybe that's why it works -- but it's really a marvel, a mystery why it does work.

I may look at the remake. It's got a tough job.

[frankmcr]

I've only seen the original in the MST3K version, and I enjoyed the heck out of it.

I have the remake waiting on prime and have some hope it will be comparable.

[Wade Hampton]

Originally Posted by FrankHudson

Oh Wade, you and I both have a fondness for the original movie.

One of the reasons I like the original is that it’s set in Missouri, and that’s my native state.

Also, it’s got a good guy character named Wade. Usually when there’s a character named Wade in a movie he’s a third tier bad guy, often the guy who asks:

“Do you want me to kill him now, boss?”

Those bad guy Wades are usually the first to die, too!


whm

[Gromitspapa]

The original had more likeable characters. The original Dalton had more charm, and a Zen philosophy. Jake's Dalton had a serious self-control problem. I commend Jake on his physique, but his character was built on that too much vs his personality. I blame that on the writers, not Jake.

I thought Jessica Williams was a poor casting choice. Nothing against her- she was brilliant in Shrinking. Again, poor writing.

I really enjoyed Colin's over-the-top character Knox. His casting was inspired. There was a counterpart to Knox in the original- Jimmy.

The "girlfriend" was more inspired in the original. The new girlfriend takes Jake to a picnic in a foot of ocean water??

The bookstore owner was a waste. The daughter was okay, but under-developed. Red in the original was good. Plenty of ridiculous characters in both movies, but it's a guilty pleasure type of movie.

Maybe I've lowered some expectations so some will enjoy it more. I enjoyed it more the second time I watched it.

[RP]

Originally Posted by Gromitspapa

Red in the original was good...

Red West was Elvis' bodyguard for 20 years...

[Mbroady]

It's been years since I've seen the original but loved it. I thought the new version was entertaining, but the characters where not very well developed, and they lacked depth.

The music was the best part.

[frankmcr]

Just remember,

"Pain don't hurt."

[Rolph]

I liked the first one much more. Jake really got into great shape for this film.

[Methos1979]

There are good and bad to both. The first had some so-so writing and acting but Swayze and Eliot saved the day with their onscreen charisma and past relationship. And Jeff Healey was way-cool. The original gf was more nuanced and likeable. I do like that they did not try a complete duplicate of the original. I think Jake's character needed a little more development and exploration of his rage and what happened to his 'friend' that he apparently either beat to death or near-death (then never really say). I agree the whole bookstore storyline was a waste of time.

The star of the (new) show was definitely Conor's character. Suspect acting aside (he's a fighter, not an actor), his screen presence and over the top personality was great and saved the movie, in my opinion. One thing I much preferred with the original was the way Swayze's Dalton actually worked with a group of bouncers to whip them into shape as an effective team on how to handle bouncing. There was none of that in the remake and I think that was a mistake. There were one or two extra bouncers that seemed to be almost an afterthought in the writing.

But I think both hold up in the guilty pleasure department.

[KenL]

I love the original, and if it's on I will watch it. My wife just rolls her eyes and leaves the room. But it's good clean fun, and the best bad movie I know of.

The new one was pretty good. The bad guys are way over the top, but fun to hate. Jake Gyllenhaal was excellent, playing the good guy with some subtle humor. He's got the rubbery face that makes him good at that.

The female love interest plot line wasn't much in the new one, while it was entertaining in the original.

Good effort on the new one, but I'll take the original by a long shot.

[Wade Hampton]

I actually prefer the female love interest in the new one, but agree that the filmmakers could have done more to flesh out her character.


whm

[Mr. Jelly]

Originally Posted by Wade Hampton

The single biggest change is the addition of a maniacal bad guy played UFC champion Conor McGregor. I don’t know whether McGregor can act, per se, but his screen presence and charisma are off the charts. He’s riveting, and absolutely steals every scene he’s in.

Somebody needs to work a project with him, like yesterday. He's money in the bank. For the short term at least.

The movie is entertaining. Without McGregor it could have been worthless.

[Gromitspapa]

Originally Posted by RP

Red West was Elvis' bodyguard for 20 years...

That was interesting, so I looked him up. There's a lot to his story!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_West