Road House

ROAD HOUSE (1989) - July 5, 2011
About a bad ass bouncer who comes to a small town to clean up a bar, only to find himself butting heads with an evil businessman.  Patrick Swayze was quite good as the initially unflappable bouncer, and Sam Elliott stole every scene he was in as his grizzled mentor.  But the movie itself is just not all that great -- certainly, it's not the action classic that it's been built up as over the years.  It actually drags pretty badly in parts, with long stretches in which not all that much happens.  There's also a romantic subplot which feels pretty much completely superfluous.  Rowdy Herrington's direction was fine, though the film does feel quite dated.  It does definitely improve towards the end, with some memorable action scenes (including a fight which ends with Swayze ripping a guy's throat out), but all in all this was a definite let-down.  **