ThiefHott Too much of everything

JinRoz For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

Ava-Grace Willis Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

Mathilde the Guild Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

mariesms Unlike many, I found this movie to be very entertaining. James Marsden (David) and Alexander Skarsgård (Charlie) particularly excel in their roles.The film's basic plot revolves around a married couple, David and Amy (Kate Bosworth) moving back to her childhood home and community,and hiring her ex-boyfriend Charlie, and his friends, to fix the roof of their barn. But of course, trouble ensues.There are many different "dark" themes present explored throughout, from the stiff Southern American culture, one's place in nature, violence,desire.Masculinity is a another theme present. This film's dark moments have been known to give many people the chills.Having the story set in Mississippi, Southern America instead of England I think was a better move and made it more interesting.You could go and watch the more highly acclaimed Straw Dogs 1971 movie if you wish, but I think this modern remake is perfectly fine on its own.

rgaviator3354 I really enjoyed the original not because it came out first, but the direction quality was 10 X better! First of all it was Dustin Hoffman, enough said. That it was set in an English country side vs the rural south. The plots for both were essentially the same but there were enough twists in the remake to contrast the two films. Unfortunately those factors all play in the lesser entertainment value of the remake. The characters lacked personification and just didn't stand out well enough. Actually they were all stereotypical, all the way down to the sheriff. Although James Woods certainly is a classic actor, his role seemed underplayed given his acting ability. There were some good parts to the remake, such as the scene prior to and after the football game. I suppose if the remake was the original, then it would be a better movie. If you only saw the remake, do yourself a favor and see classic Sam P. direction.

videorama-759-859391 As only ever seeing parts of the original, with this remake, I'm pretty sure I'd still enjoy this versions better. Remakes tend to be livelier than originals. Here there's a forty year stretch. Marsden in one of his best roles (an actor who by now really deserves recognition) and his girlfriend (Kate Bosworth) really sexing it up here, move out to the country, where Bosworth was once a resident. Screenwriter, Marsden, has come out here to get some peace and quiet to work on his writing. When a group of townsfolk laborers, led by a jealous ex boyfriend of Bosworth's, come out to build a barnhouse, so begins an unnerving game to test one's patience, the main operative being Marsden, where these tradesmen show some uncanny behaviour and unnerving traits. If familiar with the premise of the original, we're treading the exact same waters, where we really get good performances out of the cast, notably Alexander Skarsgard, as the grudging ex, intent on seeing outsider, Marsden break, where they're main objective is to eventually drive em' out. But what's great about this Straw Dogs, as again I haven't seen most of the original, was a subplot in the third act, which leads to an ending on a path you don't expect it to go, involving an accidental murder, with now a much avenging townsfolk, where an almost intensely suffocating finale ensues. As for violence, it's sparse, only used with necessary, here one visual standout, a squirming, bone breaking moment, I guess to pun it up. I found the movie, most entertainingly rewarding, all through, something to talk about, with an ending I didn't expect, as I did a version of the song Breathless, unsung by Jerry Lee Lewis, here, coming across Marsden's radio. Willa Holland is delicious eye candy, looking appetizing, full cheerleader uniform and all, the apple of an older retarded guy's eye (Dominic Purcell) and she doesn't exactly mind too, where they have an open relationship. An aging James Woods as Holland's father, who really storms with anger when provoked, I didn't recognize at first. I guess we all get old.

Coventry For the first time ever, I was completely unbiased to watch a remake! Usually Hollywood always has the god-awful and annoying habit of remaking personal favorite horror/cult movies of mine that are already impeccable and not really suitable for improvement, but regarding "Straw Dogs" I felt a lot less concerned since I never was a die-hard admirer of Sam Peckinpah's original from 1971. Surely I acknowledge its importance and influence for the genre, but still mainly consider it to be a deeply unpleasant movie that all too enthusiastically glorifies senseless violence and somehow spreads the message that every man needs to undergo a couple of rape and violence rituals in order to become a real man. "Straw Dogs" 2011 also isn't just any random remake from an aspiring young director who desperately needed an obvious jumping board to success, but by the intelligent writer/director Rod Lurie. He inserted a couple of relevant changes (like the geographical transfer from redneck Southern England to redneck Southern United States) and efficiently put the emphasis on in-depth character development. There's still a fair portion of harsh violence and misogynic brutality in this version, mind you, but at least it's depicted in a lot less gratuitous and joyous way. The infamous rape sequence, for example, still evokes debates regarding provocation but at least the script doesn't all too obviously endorse the so-called 'rape-myth' that all women secretly desire to be physically dominated. The rest of the plot remains the same as well (also because it's a book adaption, of course) and thus focuses on a successful couple temporarily moving to the girl's hometown in Southern Mississippi. The (re-)integration in this traditional and underdeveloped community leads to embarrassing situations for the husband and humiliating confrontations for the wife, as her former boyfriend Charlie and his gang of tough huntsmen penetrate themselves into their lives. Things come to a bloody climax when David and Amy want to prevent the locals from executing private justice. "Straw Dogs" effectively bathes in grim and unsettling atmosphere and hugely benefices from the performances. James Marsden and Kate Bosworth are excellent, but particularly the local hillbillies are portrayed in a disturbingly realistic matter. Amongst them also the always reliable James Woods as a hellish football coach. Also, respecting the rules of cinema, there's some fuzz about a bear claw rather early in the film, so you just know this particularly gruesome and inventive murder instrument will be back in the finale as well.PS: lovely soundtrack with, amongst others, the wondrous ballad "Summer Wine" by Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood. I hadn't heard that song in years, but I now instantly added it to my play lists again.