Rod Lurie Remakes 'Straw Dogs;' 'Contagion' Scientist

Director Rod Lurie talks candidly about his decision to remake Sam Peckinpah's iconic film, Straw Dogs. Lurie expected a lot of division over this remake but says that Dustin Hoffman for one -- who starred in the original -- gave him his blessing. Plus, Dr. W. Ian Lipkin talks about consulting on the Soderbergh pandemic thriller, Contagion. The Director of the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University got in early as screenwriter Scott Z. Burns developed the screenplay and then ended up weighing in on nearly every aspect of production including costumes, sound, set design and acting. In fact, he coached Gwyneth Paltrow on how to fake a plausible seizure and gave Matt Damon insight into being quarantined.

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Banner image: (L) Poster for the original 1971 Sam Peckinpah movie, starring Dustin Hoffman; (R) poster for the 2011 remake directed by Rod Lurie, starring James Marsden