Straw Dogs

When this cynically violent, exceedingly graphic (even by director Sam Peckinpah’s standard) revenge saga first came out, some people considered it a serious exploration of humanity’s ambivalent relationship with the dark side: A nerdy guy (Hoffman) and his hot wife (George) move to the country, where everybody tries to beat him and rape her. Today, though, Straw Dogs plays like a social-climbing exploitation bloodbath. If that’s your cup of grime, this new letterboxed version is the way to go; it restores scenes deleted for the American market, and analog tracks showcase Jerry Fielding’s Oscar-nominated score.