"Straw Dogs" is a remake of the 1971 movie of the same name and is directed, produced and written by Rod Lurie ("Deterrence,""Nothing but the Truth"), and is a relatively faithful adaptation with a scenery change, while keeping all the plot devices intact. What we get is a competent, visceral thriller, and one of the more brutal films in recent memory.
James Marsden stars as David Sumner, a Los Angeles playwright who moves with his newly betrothed, Amy(Kate Bosworth), to a rural town deep in the South, which is also where Amy is from. A stranger in a new town, David has trouble adjusting to the customs and mannerisms of the town. The two move into a large manor where Amy's deceased father lived. David hires a roof repair team led by Charlie Venner (Alexander Skarsgård) to fix the large shed on the property. The plot device here is that Charlie and Amy used to date in their teens back in the town. Tensions between David and the town simmer into a violent turn.
The whole movie has a bizarre sense of being passable by today's standards. Sets are detailed, but not particularly eye catching. The acting is above average with no real stand outs, save for maybe the character of Tom Heddon, played by James Woods. The writing is subpar and manages to get the point across, and the cinematography is nothing to gawk at, but gets the job done. All of this culminates into a...well, a passable film.
With remakes, something has to be taken in a different direction or else the whole effort seems pointless. The central themes of "Straw Dogs" are manhood and violence, and, in this case, violence takes the driver's seat with manhood navigating. Violence is everywhere in this film, from character interactions to ritualistic weekly football games reminiscent of Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery." However, and this is a BIG however, the nature in how violence is treated indicates a celebration of violence. Every time a confrontation erupts, the locals jeer them on, same idea with the football games. The complexity of the piece falls as a result, but does yield an interesting outcome. The interactions all ooze something visceral.
The early violent scenes would have one shake their head in disapproval, but as time passes on one becomes enveloped in the violence. You feel the impacts, the drama, something "Fight Club" captured moderately well. Consequently, the climax is where one feels the best. You are behind the protagonist no matter what extremes may occur. Oddly enough, this particular feeling is not fueled by a well conveyed feeling of suspense. If anything, the outcome of the end is moderately predictable.
You will not experience any moral crises or epiphanies with "Straw Dogs." You will, however, experience an entertaining if somewhat misguided film that will leave you with a particular taste in your mouth. A taste that will be difficult to get rid of.
