Dustin Hoffman is perfectly cast as wealthy American mathematician David Sumner. Soon after arriving to an isolated English village with his energetic young wife Amy (the captivating Susan George), trouble starts. You see, she's so attractive the men in town can't keep from leering at her, he's such a pacifist the locals feel at ease to push him around and the jealousy over David's wealth, power, intelligence and wife turn to a series of harassments, one more extreme than the next until Amy is brutally beaten and raped. David finally snaps and decides he's had enough when their assailants accidentally kill a cop and then hold them at bay in their own home.
Not a horror film in the traditional sense, this (one of the most controversial movies of the 1970s) is nonetheless an effective, violent and relevant piece of shock cinema. Peckinpah's statement is that in this world, like it or not, there is a genuine need for violence and he concentrates most on uncovering how common emotions (jealousy, vengeance, lust) can turn seemingly normal men evil. Containing strong performances from the entire cast, STRAW DOGS has been copied many times since, but seldom this effectively.
Not a horror film in the traditional sense, this (one of the most controversial movies of the 1970s) is nonetheless an effective, violent and relevant piece of shock cinema. Peckinpah's statement is that in this world, like it or not, there is a genuine need for violence and he concentrates most on uncovering how common emotions (jealousy, vengeance, lust) can turn seemingly normal men evil. Containing strong performances from the entire cast, STRAW DOGS has been copied many times since, but seldom this effectively.