More for Straw Dogs

I really don’t think the world needs a remake of Sam Peckinpah’s raw rural thriller STRAW DOGS, but necessity is rarely the driving force behind Hollywood decisions…

At least the update is getting an interesting cast. James Marsden looks like he’ll finally get more deserved dramatic work as a Hollywood screenwriter (…) who travels with his wife to her hometown for a bit of seclusion, only to find himself dealing with rape and terror. Bad vacation, yeah.

Now joining Marsden are actress/RealDoll Kate Bosworth, and Alexander Skarsgard (Stellan’s awesome son) of HBO’s “Generation Kill” and “True Blood”. One of them plays the wife, the other not.

The shocking 1971 original starred Dustin Hoffman as a scientist who moves to a quiet area in England with his British wife (Susan George) to get away from the violence of America, only to find himself savagely mixing it up with some nasty locals.

The update is being directed by Rod Lurie (DETERRENCE, RESURRECTING THE CHAMP), a former film critic who should honestly know better than to touch something like this. But I guess a job is a job…