Trivia / Straw Dogs (1971)

• Banned in China: Was banned from home video distribution in the UK until 2002. Contrary to popular belief, it was not a Video Nasty.
• Deleted Role: Tom Hedden's family were originally given roles in the film, but they were either cut or never filmed. June Brown was cast as Hedden's wife, together with Chloe Franks as their daughter Emma, and a scene was scripted featuring both in their home doing laundry with Susan George. However, although the scene was included, it was never filmed. Michael Mundell was originally cast as Cawsey the rat-catcher but was later switched to the role of Bertie Hedden in a scene featuring the village children. However, this entire scripted role was also never filmed because the scene was canceled due to time and budget constraints.
• Disowned Adaptation: Gordon Williams was so upset by the adaptation of his novel that he vowed never to sell another of his works to an American.
• Enforced Method Acting: When David first arrives at the local pub, Dustin Hoffman appeared naked in order to get an appropriately shocked reaction from the extras. You can see the local drunk's eyes widen and immediately drop down, presumably to stare at Hoffman's bare crotch. This is justified in the follow-up shot of David, which pans up from his shoes.
• Inspiration for the Work: The film drew inspiration from Robert Ardrey's books African Genesis and The Territorial Imperative, which argued that man was essentially a carnivore who instinctively battled over control of territory.
• Money, Dear Boy: Dustin Hoffman - not usually a fan of violent films - admitted that he only took the role in this movie for the money. In spite of this (and the Troubled Production) Hoffman developed a tremendous respect for Peckinpah, and would later call him the only true artist he ever worked with.
• Wag the Director: When Sam Peckinpah was planning the scene in which Amy is raped twice, he would not tell Susan George how he was going to shoot the scene. Under pressure from her, he eventually told her bluntly that Amy would first be raped and then buggered. She refused to take part in Peckinpah's plans for explicit portrayal of this and threatened to resign. He eventually relented, allowing George to depict Amy's trauma by concentrating on her eyes and face, rather than her body.
• Throw It In!: Dustin Hoffman ad-libbed the ambiguous ending line in which he tells Niles that he, too, does not know his way home, and Sam Peckinpah decided to use that as the end.
• Uncredited Role: David Warner receives no credit for his role as Henry Niles. Warner has said in interviews that his agent had tried to get him a star billing, prompting Warner to state that he wanted to work with Peckinpah again enough that he would take the role even if he got no billing at all — and the idea amused Peckinpah, who decided to take him at his word.
• Working Title: Siege at Trencher's Farm, The Siege of Trencher's Farm and The Square Root of Fear. Some contemporary news items referred to the picture as The Straw Dogs or The Strawdogs.
• What Could Have Been:
  • Beau Bridges, Elliott Gould, Stacy Keach, Jack Nicholson, Sidney Poitier, Cliff Robertson and Donald Sutherland were considered for David Sumner.
  • Jacqueline Bisset, Linda Hayden, Hayley Mills, Helen Mirren, Charlotte Rampling and Diana Rigg were considered for Amy.
  • Sam Peckinpah wanted either Richard Harris or Peter O'Toole for the role of Charlie Venner.
  • Trevor Howard was offered the role of Major Scott.
  • Anthony Hopkins was offered a major role.
  • In the original shooting script, the children of the dead villagers menaced David and Amy, threatening to continue the siege.
  • Peckinpah attempted to interest Harold Pinter in writing the script before production began, but Pinter, loathing the subject matter, refused.
• Written-In Infirmity:
  • T.P. McKenna, who plays Major John Scott, has his arm in a sling. This wasn't written in the script — McKenna had broken it while having a wild party with a couple of prostitutes, arranged by Sam Peckinpah.
  • Henry Niles' limp was not part of the script. David Warner had broken his leg before production but was able to walk with a cane by the time principal photography started. The film's insurance company refused to cover him, and Peckinpah offered to pay his cover out of his own pocket to keep Warner in the film.

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