Road House

Road House. 1989 United Artists, distributed to DVD by MGM.
Starring: Patrick Swayze, Kelly Lynch, Sam Elliott, Ben Gazzara, Kevin Tighe, Red West
Director: Rowdy Herrington
Available at Amazon.

This is the ultimate guy movie.

James Dalton (Swayze) is a professional "cooler" who is lured away from his current L.A. job by club owner Frank Tilghman (Tighe) to work at his place, The Double Deuce, in Jasper, Missouri. Dalton has a degree in philosophy from New York University, and while he's an expert in martial arts, he prefers to resolve a confrontation peacefully. Jasper's residents seem to know who Dalton is, and welcome him with open arms for the most part.

The Double Deuce is a place where drunken brawls are a nightly event. Dalton is injured on his first night on the job, and "Doc" Clay (Lynch) comes to his service, as she's the town's physician. Doc and Dalton hit it off immediately, although another man, extortionist Brad Wesley (Gazzara) already is pursuing her. Wesley has everyone in town under his thumb, and is used to getting his way. Dalton, he feels, needs to be taught a lesson. Dalton decides to try cleaning up Jasper in addition to his night job of breaking up brawls.

It's inevitable they'll engage in some good ol' fashioned violence before the credits roll.

It's not a classic movie by any means, but it's great fun to watch. Highly recommended.