Brutal And Entertaining || Review of Road House (2024)
I'm not a fan of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) or cage fights and wrestling matches because of the violence attached to them but this recent release, which is a remake of an older film, piques my interest in this genre. So if you enjoy this sort of entertainment, you may like Road House (2024).
In the remake of the 1989 Patrick Swayze action thriller of same name, a former UFC fighter, Elwood Dalton (played by Jake Gyllenhaal), with a torturous past is hired by the owner of a road house in Florida to be her bouncer. At first, he turns down the offer but accepts it after a failed suicide attempt.
Arriving at Glass Keys island in Florida, Dalton meets and befriends a teenage girl running a bookstore with her father. At night, he starts his job at the roadhouse by fending off a biker gang who started to trash the place and hurt people. It turns out the gang works for a local crime boss, Ben Brandt (played by Billy Magnussen). Brandt gets angry that the roadhouse is protected and wants Dalton dead or gone. A full on war against Glass Keys' newest resident begins. Why does Ben Brandt want the roadhouse destroyed?
It took a lot of convincing from a friend to get me to see the film because I'm not a fan of Jake Gyllenhaal but after watching, I can say his performance in this film is not bad. Although the strength of the film is focused on brutal fights and bone-crunching savagery, there's also a good plot. A lady hires a bouncer to defend her roadhouse and it turns out there's more to the story than the usual trashing of the place every night.
The storytelling is well laid out but the reason for wanting the roadhouse destroyed doesn't really fit the viciousness or violence attached to it. But then again, when money and maybe drugs are involved, things can get brutal.
The cast's performance is impressive. Jake Gyllenhaal did great embodying the character of a defeated brawler who's merely living (there was a failed suicide attempt) until the roadhouse gives him a bit of purpose and revives old wounds. His action scenes are fascinating to watch and when bones crunch as he doles out blows, I cringe. I think that says a lot about how great the cinematography is.
One actor that got my attention in this film is Conor McGregor, the popular MMA fighter and UFC champion. His entry into the film is quite dramatic and all through, he almost steals the show from Jake Gyllenhaal. He's bold, loud, strong and nearly unstoppable as if he's fueled by adrenaline. I think he's a natural at playing a brutal yet energetic villain even better than Billy Magnussen, the main villain. I understand this film is McGregor’s first feature and hope he appears in more films and gives protagonists a run for their money.
Billy Magnussen is also a villain but his performance was not satisfactory. He didn't act like a crime boss at all but more like a cartoon character as he often does in some of his movies. Check out Aladdin (2019) and you'll understand what I mean.
There are actors that I feel deserve more screen time like the teenager at the bookshop (played by Hannah Lanier) and Frankie (played by Jessica Williams), the owner of the roadhouse. The screenplay did not incorporate their backstories which makes the plot a little one sided. I feel the audience should know more about Frankie especially.
Overall, Road House is an entertaining action film and the cast did great. The mid-credits scene suggests there may be a sequel but I'm hoping not. The ending is satisfactory in my opinion. Note this film is R-rated for violence, drugs, nudity and sex. I'll give it 3.8 stars out of 5.
Thank you for visiting my blog.
Thumbnail image, Fair Use
Other images are screenshots from the movie
Posted using CineTV