‘Road House’ (2024) Lacks the Charm of the Original
It features some improvements and some misses.
Road House (2024) introduces us to Elwood Dalton (Jake Gyllenhaal), an ex-UFC fighter who gets hired as a bouncer in a Florida bar. Shenanigans ensue from there.
Because this is a remake of an iconic movie, I had to watch the original Patrick Swayze experience to prepare. And I couldn’t get that movie out of my head while watching this remake. For better or worse, I was comparing this new film to the old one the entire time. That definitely colored my experience.
The original Road House is utterly ridiculous, and some elements are fairly problematic. But it’s also filled with that 80s camp that we’ve come to know and love. It’s one of those movies that is fun to watch, even if it’s not the most high-quality cinema.
The 2024 version of Road House does make some improvements to the story (we’ll get to those in a moment). But I think the changes the writers made to Dalton’s character detract from what made the original film so interesting.
In the new version, Elwood Dalton (someone on the writing team must love The Blues Brothers) is an ex-UFC fighter who snaps when he gets angry. It takes him a long time to reach that point, but once he does, it’s over.
