“Straw Dogs” (わらの犬 / Straw Dogs), Original Release Japanese Movie Poster 1971, B2 Size (51 × 73 cm) Q10

This is an original Japanese B2 poster printed in 1971 for the first Japanese theatrical release of Straw Dogs, Sam Peckinpah’s brutal and deeply unsettling thriller starring Dustin Hoffman, Susan George, and Peter Vaughan. A powerful example of early-1970s Japanese poster design for serious American cinema, it combines stark portraiture, ominous colour, and psychological intensity in a way that perfectly suits the film’s atmosphere of mounting dread and violence.

Film background
Released in 1971, Straw Dogs is one of Sam Peckinpah’s most controversial and enduring films: a tense study of masculinity, humiliation, fear, and erupting violence. Set in rural England, it follows an American mathematician and his wife whose fragile domestic life unravels under increasing local hostility, culminating in one of the most famous and disturbing siege climaxes in 1970s cinema. With Dustin Hoffman cast brilliantly against type, the film remains one of Peckinpah’s key works and one of the defining psychological thrillers of its era.

Poster design
This Japanese poster is strikingly severe and highly effective. The design is dominated by a huge close-up of Dustin Hoffman’s face, rendered in warm, oppressive tones that immediately suggest unease and paranoia. Above him, smaller inset images of Susan George, the shotgun, and moments of threat and confrontation establish the film’s sexual tension and impending violence without overcrowding the composition. The large hand-brushed Japanese title わらの犬 across the centre gives the sheet tremendous impact, while the overall layout feels both elegant and menacing. It is an exceptionally strong and very displayable Japanese design for one of the great American thrillers of the period.

Condition
Very Good. Please review the photos—they show the exact poster for sale. The poster shows expected light wear and age-related handling from period cinema use. A few small tears have been professionally stabilised with archival tape on the verso. We have taken the condition fully into account when pricing. Please see the additional close-up imagery provided. Once framed, this poster will display excellently, with strong colour, dramatic contrast, and outstanding wall presence.

It is over 50 years old!
It is not a reproduction or a reprint.
Certificate of Authenticity included.