Straw Dogs (1971) Movie Overview

Straw Dogs is a 1971 domestic drama psychological thriller directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring Dustin Hoffman and Susan George. The screenplay by Peckinpah and David Zelag Goodman is based on the novel, The Siege of Trencher’s Farm by Gordon Williams. The film’s title derives from a discussion in the Tao Te Ching which likens the human condition to that of an ancient Chinese ceremonial straw dog. The film is noted for its violent concluding sequences and a complicated rape scene that critics point to as an example of Peckinpah’s (and Hollywood’s) debasement of women. Released theatrically the same year as A Clockwork Orange, The French Connection, and Dirty Harry, the film sparked heated controversy over the perceived increase of violence in cinema. Remaining controversial, it is nevertheless considered one of Peckinpah’s greatest films. The film premiered in US cinemas on December 29, 1971. David Sumner (Dustin Hoffman), a timid American mathematician, leaves the chaos of college anti-war protests to live with his young wife Amy (Susan George) in her native village in Cornwall in the south-west corner of Great Britain. Almost immediately, there is tension between the couple as… Source

• Straw Dogs Movie Details
• Director: Sam Peckinpah
• Tagline: The knock at the door meant the birth of one man and the death of seven others!
• Country: UK , USA
• Run Time: 118 min | USA:113 min (R-rated version)
• Genre: Drama , Thriller

• Cast Overview
• Dustin Hoffman as David Sumner
• Susan George as Amy Sumner
• Peter Vaughan as Tom Hedden
• T.P. McKenna as Major John Scott
• Del Henney as Charlie Venner
• Jim Norton as Chris Cawsey

Straw Dogs Movie Overview – Yahoo Movies

Straw Dogs (1971): Expresses the belief that manhood requires rites of violence when a young couples idyllic life is disrupted and forever changed when the violence and savegry they sought to escape suddenly engulfs them. Source

Straw Dogs Movie Review from New York Times

Sam Peckinpah examines the instinctual capacity for violence in his controversial 1971 film, loosely based on the novel The Siege of Trencher’s Farm. To avoid the Vietnam-era social chaos in the U.S., American mathematician David Sumner (Dustin Hoffman) moves with his British wife, Amy (Susan George), to the isolated Cornish town where she grew up,… Source

Straw Dogs Movie Details from Imdb

Dustin Hoffman plays a regular American mathematician, who gets into some trouble with local bullies. He is made fun of and then his wife is raped. When they attack his home, he fights back. His outbreak of violence is extreme. Written by B.Pico… Source

Straw Dogs (1971) from YouTube