Review of Straw Dogs (1971) by Matt G — 31 Aug 2008
Among the more disurbing and powerful depictions of violence that I've ever seen. Dustin Hoffman is impeccable as the weak-willed, rather unlikeable protagonist, whose tendency to suppress and deny his own rage leads to horrifying consequences for himself and his wife.
The film's final sequence is a visceral, orgiastic hymn to savagery and male territoriality, all the more potent because of the story's subdued beginnings. Peckinpah is in top form, building the tension to an abnormally intense level, and then releasing said tension with an elegantly gratuitous display of berserk, bloodied men waging war with one another.
This review of Straw Dogs (1971) was written by Matt G on 31 Aug 2008.
Straw Dogs has generally received positive reviews.
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