There’s no way Rod Lurie’s remake of “Straw Dogs” could have improved on Peckinpah’s 1971 original. Even today, his version is powerfully unnerving as he descends his audience into the inescapable violence in all of us. All the same, Lurie’s remake turned out to be better than I expected it to be. Although not a great movie, “Straw Dogs” 2011 is compelling in that doesn’t shy away from the ugliness of violence. With his version, Lurie forces us to have a more objective look at the situations these characters get thrust into.

This one follows the 1971 version very closely. The places have been changed to protect the British innocent. The story takes place in Blackwater, Mississippi where David Sumner (James Marsden) has moved to along with his wife Amy (Kate Bosworth) who grew up there. Instead of a mathematician, David is a writer working on a screenplay dealing with Stalingrad during World War II. Attempts to fit in prove difficult as David is inadvertently condescending to the locals, and he becomes an object of taunting by Charlie Venner (Alexander Skarsgård) and his friends who work on his and Amy’s farm and willfully take advantage of their hospitality.

Those who saw the original “Straw Dogs” will remember the ambiguity of scenes like when Amy is raped and looks like she “enjoyed” it. In this version though it is made clear what constitutes rape; a woman can lead a man on but it becomes rape the moment she says “stop!” While many of the characters fall under the stereotypical denomination of hillbillies, some get more dimension than we expect them to. This is especially the case with Skarsgård’s character who commits an unforgivable act, but you wonder if his regret makes him worthy of forgiveness.

Marsden does strong work as David Sumner, but I kept wondering if he might be too cool for this role. David is the last person who (if you saw him up close) would be capable of harming a human being. Dustin Hoffman was perfectly cast in the original as he seemed like that person, and it was shocking when we saw what he was capable of. Marsden on the other hand has the build of a man who can kick ass whenever it is necessary, so he doesn’t look like the four-eyed nerd we expect him to be.

The performances here are all strong, and actors like Bosworth (giving her best performance in some time) handle the difficult aspects of their roles with professionalism and bravery. Skarsgård gets to play a more complex role than his character had in the original, and is face illustrates the inner conflicts of his character. But one actor I was especially happy to see here was James Wood who inhabits former football coach Tom Heddon with intense abandon. Whether he’s worried about his 15-year old daughter or getting drunker than he needs to at the local bar, Woods’ performance shows that he has lost none of his power that made him a great actor in the first place.

“Straw Dogs” could have been your average bland remake of a movie that didn’t require one. Lurie however manages to make the material his own. Whatever flaws it may have, it’s still a strong action film which leaves its hooks in you long after you’ve walked out of the movie theatre.

* * * out of * * * *

“Blank City” is one of those feature length documentaries that is coming in below the radar. By that, I mean most people don’t know about it, so it doesn’t look to get the attention it deserves. Once I saw the trailer for it, I was very eager to see this at the Nuart Theatre in Santa Monica where it played for a week-long engagement. It looks back at the period between the late 1970’s and mid 1980’s in New York City when it was bankrupt and seemingly beyond repair. During that time, artists of all kinds developed works that were as creative as they were daring. The documentary shows how this period ended up having a profound impact on the future of independent film.

The whole movie is like a shocking time travel to New York of the past. Many of us now see this city as an amazing metropolis, but back then it was a vast wasteland where the rent was as cheap as the drugs. Looking at the amazing footage shown to us here, this doesn’t look all that removed from the city John Carpenter envisioned in “Escape From New York.” It all looks devastated beyond repair, and you had to admire anyone who had the sheer audacity to live there. Low rent is one thing, but living in fear for your life is something else.

Listening to the artists interviewed for this illustrates a highly schizophrenic relationship with they all had this city. On one hand, the odds of you being mugged were infinitely higher than winning the lottery. But at the same time, there didn’t seem to be a more creatively influential place in the United States. The directors of the time didn’t need any permits to film, and nothing was holding them back from making the kind of movies they wanted to make.

Among the directors interview in “Blank City” is Jim Jarmusch whose movie “Stranger In Paradise” became one of the first notable films of the “No Wave Cinema.” Hearing about his exploits informs us of how influential the state of the city was on his work, and it doesn’t look like he’s veered all that far from his creative path. Indeed, he can now be seen as one of the progenitors of the independent film movement.

Other fascinating reminiscences come from people like John Lurie, Steve Buscemi, John Waters, and Debbie Harry of Blondie fame. John Lurie’s stories were among the most entertaining as he talks about how he and friends made movies for little to no money. This reminded me of what filmmaker Robert Rodriguez kept saying about having less money forces you to be more creative. Listening to Lurie almost makes one want to be more rebellious than they ever expected to be. John Waters is, as always, hilarious in the crazy tales he tells.

The director of “Blank City” is French newcomer Celine Danhier. She captures New York City at its most crime ridden as well as its most creatively productive. She does a very good job of contrasting its period of bankruptcy to its place in post-Reagan America. The city has long since been gentrified into the real estate capital Donald Trump continues to take advantage of. While that has made it safer, it has inadvertently robbed New York of the maverick status it once had. The loss of that is deeply felt by those involved in this documentary.

“Blank City” does drag a bit at certain points because a number of movies it shows clips from are frankly not all that good. With many of them, they have the feel of you had to be there at the time to fully appreciate them. Things do pick up towards the end when the advent of the Ronald Reagan as President signals the end of what these filmmakers had and the beginning of increased persecution with the rise of AIDS.

This is a fascinating documentary that brings us back to a land time forgot. New York will never be the same, and there is both good and bad to that fact. Taking this trip though makes for one of the more fascinating films ever made about New York City.

* * * ½ out of * * * *

www.blankcityfilm.com