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Written by Gregg Shapiro
Sep 22, 2011
Dustin Hoffman in “Straw Dogs” – Photo: Courtesy
“Fiddler On The Roof” – Photo: Courtesy
‘Straw Dogs’
The release of the unrated Blu-ray of “Straw Dogs” starring Dustin Hoffman comes just in time for the film’s 40th anniversary and just as the remake starring James Marsden is hitting theaters.
Bespectacled mathematician and pacifist David (Hoffman) returns to his British bride Amy’s (Susan George) countryside village to work on a book. Away from the protests and anti-war hubbub of America, David, who “never claimed to be one of the involved,” just wants to write.
But the couple stands out in the crowd. David stands out simply for being American. Pretty blonde Amy draws attention for her very short skirts and going bra-less. And, as it turns out, she has a history in the town.
A crew of workers, including Amy’s ex, Charlie (Del Henney), are hired to work on repairing David and Amy’s garage, but they spend more time observing and taunting the couple. They kill Amy’s cat and a couple of them, including Charlie, sexually assault her.
David doesn’t do much to ingratiate himself to the locals. He insults the vicar, creates a stir in the pub and is generally awkward in social situations. Then he provides shelter to Henry (David Warner), the village pervert, unaware that he has killed a young girl. That’s when David experiences the full wrath of perpetually drunk town elder Tom (Peter Vaughan) and his demented posse.
In the ultimate battle of brains versus brawn and mind over muscle, “dirty Yank” David stands tall, vowing not to “allow violence against his house.”
The hyper-violent “Straw Dogs” is a showcase for director Sam Peckinpah’s trademark use of slow-motion camera tricks and bloodshed. The violence of “Straw Dogs” set the standard for the remainder of the decade, as exemplified in films such as “Deliverance,” “Death Wish” and “Taxi Driver.” Blu-ray special features include the original theatrical trailer and TV ads.
‘Fiddler on the Roof’
By 1971, the elaborate, MGM-style movie musical was becoming a thing of the past. What better way to celebrate the end of an era than with the newly re-mastered, 40th-anniversary Blu-ray+DVD edition of “Fiddler On The Roof”?
Norman Jewison directed this movie version of the stage musical, which was based on Sholom Aleichem’s stories of persecuted Jews struggling for survival in a Russian shtetl. Notorious scene nosher Topol stars as poor milkman Tevye, anxious to marry off the three eldest of his five daughters. The late gay actor Leonard Frey (“The Boys in the Band”) earned an Oscar nomination as Motel the tailor and a young Paul Michael Glaser appears as free-thinking Perchik.
Jerry Bock & Sheldon Harnick’s songs, including “Sunrise, Sunset,” “Matchmaker” and “If I Were a Rich Man” (later sampled by Gwen Stefani in her song “Rich Girl”), have become part of the American musical theater vernacular. Hours of Blu-ray bonus material include audio commentary by Jewison and Topol, a deleted song and a multitude of featurettes.
