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Straw Dogs

Play trailer Poster for Straw Dogs R 2011 1h 50m Drama Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
42% Tomatometer 124 Reviews 34% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
Married couple David (James Marsden) and Amy (Kate Bosworth) move to her hometown of Blackwater, Miss., after her father's death. They have a plan to renovate Amy's old home and prepare it for sale while David works on his latest screenplay. However, the sophisticated couple's arrival stirs resentment and suspicion among the locals, especially from Charlie (Alexander Skarsgård), Amy's former boyfriend. Tension continues to build, leading to an extremely violent confrontation.
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Straw Dogs

Straw Dogs

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Critics Consensus

This remake streamlines the plot but ultimately makes a fatal mistake: It celebrates violence.

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Critics Reviews

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Keith Uhlich Time Out 11/17/2011
1/5
What in the Sam Peckinpah Hill is this?!? Go to Full Review
Peter Bradshaw Guardian 11/03/2011
2/5
It isn't badly made, but what's the point of rebooting Straw Dogs, if the only object is to repackage it, and make it marginally less offensive? Go to Full Review
Robbie Collin Daily Telegraph (UK) 11/03/2011
3/5
Rod Lurie has adapted with intelligence... Go to Full Review
Brian Eggert Deep Focus Review 03/08/2023
2/4
A wholly unnecessary Hollywood treatment of Sam Peckinpah’s unsettling and controversial 1971 original. Go to Full Review
Mike Massie Gone With The Twins 11/30/2020
6/10
It's a testament to the power of the story (Sam Peckinpah's adaptation of Gordon Williams' novel) that the 2011 remake is still entertaining despite its numerous shortcomings. Go to Full Review
Richard Propes TheIndependentCritic.com 09/24/2020
3.0/4.0
The film is really carried by Alexander Skarsgard's incredibly disturbing turn. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Jeffrey P @vanillavoodoo1 Jun 15 Went mostly as expected, but captvating, nonetheless. See more Jamie C. @JamieChill Apr 26 I’m biased because I’m from a small town and totally relate to this. It’s kinda funny how the geek beats the jocks but overall- (I watch a movie every night,) & this has been the peak of my week. See more Briana I. @Anaire Apr 22 Very stupid film only men would enjoy... White promiscuous wife thinks it's ok to be disrespectful to her husband and tease her ex and redneck friends because she wants to be a childish hoe but then turns victim when you reap what you sow happens to her hmmm.... The husband was a naive sissy most of the film, who invited the devil in his home when he gave them work. The end was a good example of " Im not a killer, but don't push me" lol Overall Very stupid movie and basically an accurate portrayal of how white people think and are in real life... ALWAYS THE VICTIM, NEVER THE PROVOKERS! See more Peter M @Movieman21 Mar 18 Where the original one was slow, insipid, dragging, depressing, this is a smart, fresh, exciting well approached remake with a standout performance by Skarsgard. Kate Bosworthy adds sultry hotness. This one is never boring, and always engaging. See more Giovanni P @imgiovanni22 Jan 26 This remake of Straw Dogs is like the worst bag of junk food you'll ever eat: you won't be able to stop until it's finished and then you'll feel sick afterwards. Someone needs to find out how much Kate Bosworth was paid to do this movie because apparently that's the price at which someone is willing to sell their soul. You would think a movie in which stupid angry redneck football coach James Woods finally gets blown away would be a feel-good movie. You would be wrong. See more Dave S @RT68722908 Oct 25 On the long list of totally pointless remakes, Straw Dogs has got to be close to the top of the list. Sam Peckinpah's original, a dark journey into the heart of human nature, was filled with brooding intensity and suffocating atmosphere thanks to its perfectly constructed story, well-developed characters, a memorable score, and the harrowing final thirty minutes. Rod Lurie's useless remake misses the mark on most of its predecessor's attributes, other than the story itself. James Marsden pales in comparison to Dustin Hoffman as the nebbish protagonist. Kate Bosworth lacks Susan George's raw sexuality. The antagonists, led by a laughable James Woods, come across as country bumpkins as opposed to the ominous villagers in the original. Little of what made the original so disturbing works in the remake. If you're going to subject yourself to the horrors of Straw Dogs, stick to the original. See more Read all reviews
Straw Dogs

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Movie Info

Synopsis Married couple David (James Marsden) and Amy (Kate Bosworth) move to her hometown of Blackwater, Miss., after her father's death. They have a plan to renovate Amy's old home and prepare it for sale while David works on his latest screenplay. However, the sophisticated couple's arrival stirs resentment and suspicion among the locals, especially from Charlie (Alexander Skarsgård), Amy's former boyfriend. Tension continues to build, leading to an extremely violent confrontation.
Director
Rod Lurie
Producer
Marc Frydman
Screenwriter
Rod Lurie
Distributor
Sony Pictures Entertainment
Production Co
Battleplan Productions
Rating
R (Menace|A Sexual Attack|Pervasive Language|Some Sexual Content|Strong Brutal Violence)
Genre
Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 16, 2011, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Feb 12, 2014
Runtime
1h 50m
Sound Mix
SDDS, Dolby Digital, DTS