Review of Straw Dogs (1971) by Simon C — 24 Jan 2009

Condemned at the time for explicit brutality, to modern eyes this doesn't look so bad. Hoffman is the nerdy American fish-out-of-water in rural England, who refuses his wife's (Susan George) pleas to stand up to local bullies. Eventually, she is raped. Hoffman doesn't even notice, but ironically chooses to take a stand against the bullies when they come to his house seeking revenge against a child-killer, who has taken refuge there. The last 30 minutes or so of the film shows Hoffman becoming increasingly violent in defence of his house, over-ruling George who wishes them to give up the childkiller (who was also one of her rapists....).

To focus on the violence is to miss the point though. What we have here is an examination of the choices men make when trying to be men, when trying to stand up for something; and of the consequences of those choices (see also the end of the Wild Bunch. And yes, I meant men - Peckinpah doesn't seem too interested in what George is thinking, except as a counterpoint to Hoffman - he's the one who grows and changes, not her).