Straw Dogs (1971)There is a quote often attributed to Aristotle: "Show me a man who resorts to violence, and I'll show you a man who has run out of good ideas." But can a rational means of mediation really apply when confronted by those who refuse to listen to reason? When violence is the language of the enemy, what good can a parlay do? As evidenced by Sam Peckinpah's ultra-violent film, Straw Dogs (1971), the answer would be "nothing". Mild-mannered American mathematician David Sumner (Dustin Hoffman) is forced to confront not just the thuggish ferocity of his new, Cornish neighbors, but his own inner beast in this film.
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Adapted from the novel, "The Siege of Trencher's Farm" by Gordon M. Williams, Straw Dogs is about the inevitable conflict between man's inherent barbaric nature and the thin veneer of civility which must yield in the face of irreconcilable differences. David comes to the native village of his beautiful, young wife, Amy (Susan George) in Cornwall, England, in what proves to be their latest attempt to escape their dissatisfaction with life in America, and also their unspoken marital differences. Although David and Amy might be close in age, you wouldn't know it to look at them. David is stoic and absorbed by academia at the expense of his affections to his wife, while Amy revels in her almost Lolita-like, petulant way of provoking David into paying attention to her. All the same, it is clear that they try to reach one another by adopting one another's characteristics in some ways--Amy tries to learn chess and wears glasses to impress upon David that she can be a part of his world, and David makes an attempt to go hunting to show Amy the same. But the stability of their lives--such as it is--tumbles further out of control when Amy comes across her ex-boyfriend, Charlie Venner (Del Henney), who makes advances toward Amy, and whom David foolishly invites to aid the men working on his house already--including the dangerously mellow Norman Scutt (Ken Hutchison) and spastic ratcatcher, Chris Cawsey (Jim Norton). Little by little, the native men ply David with false civility, while ogling Amy and inflicting petty and cruel tortures on their house, increasing in stature to devastating levels. Amy grows increasingly frustrated with David's refusal to assert himself, shying away from any semblance of conflict, which Amy takes as a sign of a lack of manhood. But Amy is originally of this world which David is not, and has preconceived notions of manliness he does not understand. One foggy night, after leaving a social event at the church, David accidentally hits Henry Niles (David Warner, uncredited) with his car, and brings him back home with him. Henry is a schizophrenic, and has a misunderstood reputation among the townsfolk. Regrettably, he is responsible for an unfortunate accident involving a young girl, Janice Hedden (Sally Thomsett), and soon thereafter, several men from town come gunning--literally--for Henry's blood, led by Janice's father and town drunk, Tom (Peter Vaughan).
Straw Dogs remains one of film's most controversial and intense depictions of violence, even forty-four years after its inception. Sam Peckinpah was no stranger to brutal and even indulgent displays of violence, but Straw Dogs is thematically dedicated to its study. Violence is always present in a multitude of forms and manifestations in the film, ratcheting up from the first scenes; even sexuality is bound inexorably to violence here. Straw Dogs drew ire from audiences for a scene in the film where Amy is raped; although a rape scene is always harrowing, the scene became infamous for the gradual shift in Amy's disposition from victim to consensual participant with Charlie Venner. Attentive viewers of Straw Dogs will note that while Amy relents to Charlie's ravishment, in the context of the film it illuminates a great divide between David and Amy. One could argue that when Charlie arrives, Amy is wearing glasses like David's, a mask which Charlie sees through, as she pretends to be someone she is not. Amy proves to belong to this brutal world, especially later during the siege of the farm when she begs David to hand Henry over to the raging drunks outside, who will most certainly kill him. Charlie is her ideal, even if she hides it from herself. Her trauma following her sexual encounter with Charlie has more to do with Norman Scutt's subsequent rape of her, which shares none of the ambiguity of the incident with Charlie. Amy is a surprisingly complex character; she knows she isn't as smart as David, but tries to relate to him as best as she can. She certainly is not stupid, but she is churlish and spiteful when she doesn't get her way. David pokes fun at her for behaving like a child at first, but in the heat of the siege, he deliberately--and necessarily--talks to her like a child. I have no question in my mind that if there were an epilogue to Straw Dogs, it would involve David and Amy parting ways. By the time we arrive at the climactic siege of "Trencher's Farm"--the Sumner homestead outside of town--David is so tired of being picked on, manipulated and bullied, and seeing the hoodlums who sneer at him for being an intellectual, that his defense of Henry is not just about seeing the mentally unstable man receive fair treatment, but also about gaining satisfaction against his oppressors, ironically by giving in to the brutal impulses they (and Amy in a way) have wanted to elicit from the humble scholar. David's cunning gives him an edge against overwhelming odds--as well as fighting a defensive battle--but it ultimately requires that he shed blood and want to shed blood to emerge victorious. David should understand that all mathematics are derived of logic, and it is only logical that sometimes only one kind of formula can be applied to find the solution, and requires playing by the appropriate set of rules, even if it leaves you with blood on your hands.
Recommended for: Fans of an intense and harrowing study of an escalation of violence and its effects on people. It is also a drama about preconceived notions about masculinity and manliness, and how perceptions about what makes a man are often associated with violence.
Straw Dogs remains one of film's most controversial and intense depictions of violence, even forty-four years after its inception. Sam Peckinpah was no stranger to brutal and even indulgent displays of violence, but Straw Dogs is thematically dedicated to its study. Violence is always present in a multitude of forms and manifestations in the film, ratcheting up from the first scenes; even sexuality is bound inexorably to violence here. Straw Dogs drew ire from audiences for a scene in the film where Amy is raped; although a rape scene is always harrowing, the scene became infamous for the gradual shift in Amy's disposition from victim to consensual participant with Charlie Venner. Attentive viewers of Straw Dogs will note that while Amy relents to Charlie's ravishment, in the context of the film it illuminates a great divide between David and Amy. One could argue that when Charlie arrives, Amy is wearing glasses like David's, a mask which Charlie sees through, as she pretends to be someone she is not. Amy proves to belong to this brutal world, especially later during the siege of the farm when she begs David to hand Henry over to the raging drunks outside, who will most certainly kill him. Charlie is her ideal, even if she hides it from herself. Her trauma following her sexual encounter with Charlie has more to do with Norman Scutt's subsequent rape of her, which shares none of the ambiguity of the incident with Charlie. Amy is a surprisingly complex character; she knows she isn't as smart as David, but tries to relate to him as best as she can. She certainly is not stupid, but she is churlish and spiteful when she doesn't get her way. David pokes fun at her for behaving like a child at first, but in the heat of the siege, he deliberately--and necessarily--talks to her like a child. I have no question in my mind that if there were an epilogue to Straw Dogs, it would involve David and Amy parting ways. By the time we arrive at the climactic siege of "Trencher's Farm"--the Sumner homestead outside of town--David is so tired of being picked on, manipulated and bullied, and seeing the hoodlums who sneer at him for being an intellectual, that his defense of Henry is not just about seeing the mentally unstable man receive fair treatment, but also about gaining satisfaction against his oppressors, ironically by giving in to the brutal impulses they (and Amy in a way) have wanted to elicit from the humble scholar. David's cunning gives him an edge against overwhelming odds--as well as fighting a defensive battle--but it ultimately requires that he shed blood and want to shed blood to emerge victorious. David should understand that all mathematics are derived of logic, and it is only logical that sometimes only one kind of formula can be applied to find the solution, and requires playing by the appropriate set of rules, even if it leaves you with blood on your hands.
Recommended for: Fans of an intense and harrowing study of an escalation of violence and its effects on people. It is also a drama about preconceived notions about masculinity and manliness, and how perceptions about what makes a man are often associated with violence.