Straw Dogs (2011)★★★★☆

Okay, it is true. I definitely liked this more than the original. The story is more tightly told, with the scare factor and tension being built up much earlier and more consistently.

This one is a bit more graphically violent, but a lot of it is a shot-for-shot (or at least scene-for-scene) remake, in the Southern United States versus rural England. That change allowed some familiar faces to join the cast and the fray.

Here I actually felt David was more insufferable than Amy. Amy’s actions here did feel more like the kind of pranks and jokes you pull in a loving relationship, and David was more aloof and cold and victim blaming than in the original.

But I thought James Marsden and Kate Bosworth were both great, and I thought the supporting cast, including James Woods and Alexander Skarsgård (and Anson Mount!) was also good here.

This movie is a bit more difficult to watch than the original, but it’s also more tightly paced and scarier, so take that as you will.