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Its almost a rare thing to find any original ideas coming out of Hollywood these days. Its even rarer to find a remake that out shines it's source material. This new retelling of Sam Peckinpah's Straw Dogs is one of those rare finds. Though a lot has change in the forty years since Dustin Hoffman first picked up a gun and grew into a man, the story is as timeless as the Bible and the end result, though very bloody, is far less pessimistic than the 1970s' version.
The story remains faithful with a few changes here and there. David Sumner (James Marsden; X-Men, Bachelorette) and his new wife Amy (Kate Bosworth; Blue Crush, Superman Returns) have come back to Amy's hometown to fix up her late father's home. Almost immediately, the town isn't exactly rolling out the red carpet for her Hollywood writer husband. In fact, they're downright rude (In one scene, David pulls out his credit card to pay for dinner and the waitress says "Cash only; its what us common folk use.". Sorry, b*tch but I'm as common as they come and I rarely, if ever carry cash.). But in strolls Charlie (Alexander Skarsgard; "True Blood", Battleship), Amy's ex boyfriend and the town's one time football legend. He seems friendly enough but his calm and cool demeanor masks an ugly side that few people outside his band of redneck friends know about.
I'm a big fan of Peckinpah's original vision (I own the now OOP Criterion release bought from Amazon as well) but the man's pessimistic attitude to our kind as well as his mean streak towards women bleeds through and the movie suffered because of it. And the biggest and best change in the update is with the Amy character. While Susan George is a beautiful woman, she made Amy out to be like the Paris Hilton of her day. She was also a completely unsympathetic character so when Charlie and his friend rapes her, you pretty much felt she got what was coming. Kate, on the other hand, gives Amy a warmth and compassionate side so that when the rape occurs (though less graphic), the abuse she suffers makes it all more realistic that we're almost prompted to shut the movie off. Plus, she is very much in love with her husband despite his flaws and it shows where, in the original, I was scratching my head trying to figure out how this nerdy mathematician was lucky enough to land such a bombshell of a wife.
I think the theaters are over flooded with remakes today so it's not surprising to know that this remake bombed out during its theatrical run. But if you're willing to give it a shot, you will not be disappointed. Just be warned that though the film isn't as bleak as its predecessor, its still very violent and not for the faint of heart. Also stars James Woods and Dominic Purcell (Primeval, "Prison Break")
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~ Nehalennia ~
Viel, viel besser als das Original!
Reviewed in Germany on November 10, 2019