Patrick Swayze, RIP

September 15th, 2009 at 08:26am Will Pfeifer

After battling pancreatic cancer for more than a year, Patrick Swayze died Monday at the age of 57.

I was never a fan of Swayze’s biggest movies, DIRTY DANCING and GHOST, mostly because they weren’t aimed anywhere near my direction, but I appreciated the fact that he seemed to be having fun onscreen and enjoyed taking offbeat roles that were just this side of comedic. His turns in POINT BREAK and ROAD HOUSE gave both films a big jolt of energy, and he didn’t seem to worry if you thought his surfer/bank robber/skydiver or zen bouncer was a bit ridiculous, he just wanted you to enjoy yourself.

And, to give the guy credit, he did branch out every now and then. He slipped into drag for TO WONG FOO, THANKS FOR EVERYTHING, JULIE NEWMAN, and he played a genuinely creepy motivational speaker in the cult film DONNIE DARKO. Here’s that movie’s trailer, which gives you a few glimpses of Swayse’s surprising performance.

Entry Filed under: Deaths