Movie Reviews: "Straw Dogs" - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

JamesG · 09-16-2011, 06:37 PM

Movie Reviews: Straw Dogs

One gets the feeling from reading the reviews of Rod Lurie’s Straw Dogs that it will appeal in the main to cinema lovers who embraced the original film by Sam Peckinpah.

Certainly the remarks of the critics — Lurie was once one of them — suggest that they found the film more interesting than engaging.

For example, A.O. Scott in the New York Times observes:

“The new Straw Dogs is at times a faithful copy of the old one, reproducing a great many scenes, shots and passages of dialogue, and tweaking others ever so slightly. …

Mr. Lurie’s movie does not quite succeed on its own, though it is pulpy and brutal and at times grotesquely comical. The story does not cohere, and the performances are uneven.

But as a piece of film criticism — as a conversation with, and interpretation of, an earlier film — it is intriguing.”

In an odd review, Michael O’Sullivan in the Washington Post zeros in on the audience reaction to the film.

He observes that Lurie expects the audience to be smart enough to be “disturbed — and not titillated” by the violence at the end of the movie.

“The question is: Are we smart enough?” he asks, noting that after the most savage violence depicted at the end of the film, the “audience responded with whooping and scattered applause… making me wonder whether the flaw’s in the new version, or in us.”

But some critics are not buying any of this lofty evaluation.

Kyle Smith in the New York Post also mentions the reaction of the audience at a New York screening, observing that audiences who watched the Peckinpah movie weren’t hooting.

Straw Dogs, he writes, “is one of those movies that sits in an armchair, smokes a pipe and reflects ‘seriously’ on ‘the question of violence,’ but the main reason to see it is for the hilariously nasty uses it devises for a bear trap, nail gun, etc.”

Peter Howell, in the Toronto Star also remarks on the audience reaction and notes that the reason a ’70s audience recoiled at the violence and today’s audience cheered may have something to do with the attitudes of the times.

Back then, he writes, “movies like Straw Dogs had the power to shock and to provoke us into discussing society’s ills. Today, they’re simply violent catharsis, encouraging us to do nothing more than to buy a bigger bag of popcorn to chew on as we gape in satisfaction and count the bullets and bodies."

And Michael Phillips in the Chicago Tribune, appears to have no patience for such analysis.

To him the film is merely a “bird-brained remake” that is “miscast, barely functional in terms of technique, stupid and unnecessary.”

-IMDB News

isiahthomas · 09-17-2011, 01:41 PM

I'm gonna see this next weekend. Kate Bosworth is hot.

JamesG · 09-17-2011, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by isiahthomas

I'm gonna see this next weekend. Kate Bosworth is hot.

Yep, hot she is...

I also want to see it for Alexander Skarsgård (True Blood), he's a great too.

isiahthomas · 09-17-2011, 01:56 PM

I saw Kate in 21 movie with Kevin Spacey and Larry Fishburne. That's a good movie. I heard Straw Dogs is a remake of a Dustin Hoffman movie. I didn't know that. I'm gonna check out Dustin's version. Have you seen Dustin's version JamesG?

JamesG · 09-17-2011, 02:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by isiahthomas

I saw Kate in 21 movie with Kevin Spacey and Larry Fishburne. That's a good movie. I heard Straw Dogs is a remake of a Dustin Hoffman movie. I didn't know that. I'm gonna check out Dustin's version. Have you seen Dustin's version JamesG?

A saw it over 10 years ago, I have to watch it again.

isiahthomas · 10-15-2011, 01:00 PM

I saw Straw Dogs with Dustin Hoffman on the shelf at Best Buy a few weeks ago. I'm gonna see if Blockbuster Video has it because i wanna see it. I tried seeing if Straw Dogs was still at the theatre because i wanna see it but it has already left the theatres here LOL. I'm gonna have to wait for it on dvd. Have you seen it JamesG?

JamesG · 10-15-2011, 03:05 PM

^ I'm waiting for the home release on this one.

isiahthomas · 10-29-2011, 01:23 PM

JamesG, how do i find out online when Straw Dogs comes out on video? I checked Blockbuster Video's website and i couldn't find a release date. I also checked Amazon.com and i didn't see a release date.

JamesG · 10-29-2011, 01:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by isiahthomas

JamesG, how do i find out online when Straw Dogs comes out on video? I checked Blockbuster Video's website and i couldn't find a release date. I also checked Amazon.com and i didn't see a release date.

No specific date has been set yet, but as of now it is tentatively December 2011.

09-16-2011, 06:37 PM	#1
JamesG Freakshow Moderator Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 01, 2008 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 57,135	Movie Reviews: "Straw Dogs" Movie Reviews: Straw Dogs One gets the feeling from reading the reviews of Rod Lurie’s Straw Dogs that it will appeal in the main to cinema lovers who embraced the original film by Sam Peckinpah. Certainly the remarks of the critics — Lurie was once one of them — suggest that they found the film more interesting than engaging. For example, A.O. Scott in the New York Times observes: “The new Straw Dogs is at times a faithful copy of the old one, reproducing a great many scenes, shots and passages of dialogue, and tweaking others ever so slightly. … Mr. Lurie’s movie does not quite succeed on its own, though it is pulpy and brutal and at times grotesquely comical. The story does not cohere, and the performances are uneven. But as a piece of film criticism — as a conversation with, and interpretation of, an earlier film — it is intriguing.” In an odd review, Michael O’Sullivan in the Washington Post zeros in on the audience reaction to the film. He observes that Lurie expects the audience to be smart enough to be “disturbed — and not titillated” by the violence at the end of the movie. “The question is: Are we smart enough?” he asks, noting that after the most savage violence depicted at the end of the film, the “audience responded with whooping and scattered applause… making me wonder whether the flaw’s in the new version, or in us.” But some critics are not buying any of this lofty evaluation. Kyle Smith in the New York Post also mentions the reaction of the audience at a New York screening, observing that audiences who watched the Peckinpah movie weren’t hooting. Straw Dogs, he writes, “is one of those movies that sits in an armchair, smokes a pipe and reflects ‘seriously’ on ‘the question of violence,’ but the main reason to see it is for the hilariously nasty uses it devises for a bear trap, nail gun, etc.” Peter Howell, in the Toronto Star also remarks on the audience reaction and notes that the reason a ’70s audience recoiled at the violence and today’s audience cheered may have something to do with the attitudes of the times. Back then, he writes, “movies like Straw Dogs had the power to shock and to provoke us into discussing society’s ills. Today, they’re simply violent catharsis, encouraging us to do nothing more than to buy a bigger bag of popcorn to chew on as we gape in satisfaction and count the bullets and bodies." And Michael Phillips in the Chicago Tribune, appears to have no patience for such analysis. To him the film is merely a “bird-brained remake” that is “miscast, barely functional in terms of technique, stupid and unnecessary.” -IMDB News

09-17-2011, 01:41 PM	#2
isiahthomas Member Forum Fanatic Join Date: Aug 20, 2002 Location: Cleveland, Ohio Posts: 10,704	I'm gonna see this next weekend. Kate Bosworth is hot.

09-17-2011, 01:56 PM	#4
isiahthomas Member Forum Fanatic Join Date: Aug 20, 2002 Location: Cleveland, Ohio Posts: 10,704	I saw Kate in 21 movie with Kevin Spacey and Larry Fishburne. That's a good movie. I heard Straw Dogs is a remake of a Dustin Hoffman movie. I didn't know that. I'm gonna check out Dustin's version. Have you seen Dustin's version JamesG?

10-15-2011, 01:00 PM	#6
isiahthomas Member Forum Fanatic Join Date: Aug 20, 2002 Location: Cleveland, Ohio Posts: 10,704	I saw Straw Dogs with Dustin Hoffman on the shelf at Best Buy a few weeks ago. I'm gonna see if Blockbuster Video has it because i wanna see it. I tried seeing if Straw Dogs was still at the theatre because i wanna see it but it has already left the theatres here LOL. I'm gonna have to wait for it on dvd. Have you seen it JamesG?

10-15-2011, 03:05 PM	#7
JamesG Freakshow Moderator Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 01, 2008 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 57,135	^ I'm waiting for the home release on this one.

10-29-2011, 01:23 PM	#8
isiahthomas Member Forum Fanatic Join Date: Aug 20, 2002 Location: Cleveland, Ohio Posts: 10,704	JamesG, how do i find out online when Straw Dogs comes out on video? I checked Blockbuster Video's website and i couldn't find a release date. I also checked Amazon.com and i didn't see a release date.