Straw Dogs

Before Bobby D. became a Taxi Driver, before Michael Douglas popped his first South Central chulo, before poor Milton set fire to his Office Space, Dustin Hoffman pioneered the regular slob-turned-psychopath. In 1971’s Straw Dogs David Sumner (Hoffman) settles down with his wife (Susan George) in her native England, only to find trouble when they enlist four locals as handymen. What follows is a torrent of violence that pushed the boundaries of the era—and now the Criterion Collection (focusing on director Sam Peckinpah) gets to the heart of Sumner’s seething rage. In the “Man of Iron” feature, a handful of ’70s Hollywood’s finest recall what a lunatic Peckinpah could be on the set (Kris Kristofferson looks genuinely scared just talking about him). Another look at the maniacal director comes in “Peckinpah Responds,” a collection of stills with letters he wrote to reviewers who bashed his movie. Addressing Life magazine, Peckinpah wrote how good he felt about the general press response, following with “but then you reviewed it, and I feel I have fallen on my ass.” Peckinpah 1, Life 0.