Straw Dogs

The most offensive thing about the movie is its hypocrisy; it is totally committed to the pornography of violence, but lays on the moral outrage with a shovel.

Upon first viewing, it seems like a straightforward film, but the more one watches it, the more tension one sees in the relationship between the couple.

Mr. Peckinpah has made some good films (Ride the High Country) and a couple of great films (The Wild Bunch, The Ballad of Cable Hogue) -- which may be why Straw Dogs is a special disappointment.

Eyes Wide Shut -- and the cooked-up debates surrounding it -- are only about sex in the head. Peckinpah gives you sex as a kick in the groin, a jolt to the brain and a shot to the heart.

A taut drama with great performances and a recipe for action and tension that modern-day thrillers could learn from.

But what if the mask of your neighbor tilts for a second and you catch a glimpse of the riot going on behind his face? What if you accidentally see the monster feasting on his prey? Now what if you're looking in the mirror?

It ends up hackneyed, unnecessary, and clichéd, improved only by the A-list acting talent and slickness of the production values.

Ugliness that must be taken seriously

Anchored by Dustin Hoffman's seminal performance, Peckinpah's second masterpiece (after The Wild Bunch) is still one of the most provocative, controversial, and ambiguous explorations of actual violence and our reaction to screen violence.

Gory and shocking.

Um assustador estudo sobre o animal interior do Homem que, mesmo moralista, conservador e misógino, impressiona por sua complexidade.

One of Sam Peckinpah's finest films, a relentless study in violence and machismo that is shocking, not only for its explicit gore, but for the degree to which it manipulates 'civilized' audiences.