Ever watched a film where when the credits rolled you still didn't fully understand what you'd just watched. You understood the story, you knew what was going on but you simply didn't "Get it". That was my problem here with Roadhouse Nights.
Based on Dashiell Hammett's book Red Harvest this story has been seen before in film form more famously as Yojimbo (1961), A Fistful of Dollars (1964) and Miller's Crossing (1990).
This version however is very different from what I've seen of the others and I don't mean that in a good way, not even remotely.
The plot is messy, the cinematography is bad even for the 1930's and it's outstandingly dull. It springs to life several times with musical numbers but that cannot save Roadhouse Nights from oceans of mediocrity.
One for fans of..............................I don't actually know.
The Good:
Musical moments are enjoyable enough
The Bad:
Utterly lifeless
Very poor editing
Things I Learnt From This Movie:
How can I learn anything if I don't know what in the blue hell is going on?