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Classics
Classics Tuesday
01Jul
The Classics Corner: "The Wicker Man"
Tuesday, July 1, 2008 at 01:35AM 
Release year: 1973
The players: Director: Robin Hardy, Writer: Anthony Shaffer, Cast: Edward Woodward, Christopher Lee, Diane Cilento, Britt Ekland
The plot: After receiving report of a missing girl, Sergeant Howie travels to mysterious Summerisle to search for her with little help from the locals.
Modern thoughts on a classic movie: How this film ever became a cult horror classic will remain a mystery. "The Wicker Man" starts off with an intriguing plot, but it quickly dissolves into nothing more than a folksy music video.
Upon Sergeant Howie’s arrival to the island of Summerisle, things automatically take a strange turn when all of the island’s inhabitants claim to never have seen the girl in the photo sent to Howie. As Howie follows strange clues that are few and far between, he delves deeper into a world of neo-pagan lifestyle where the islanders have orgies in the middle of the fields at night and teach little girls the importance of phallic symbols in school. So Howie, a devout Christian, sees it as his obligation to preach his beliefs to the people of Summerisle while searching for the lost girl.
The film automatically starts off on the wrong foot with the folksy soundtrack the characters in the film sing along to like a low-budget Broadway musical, complete with haphazard dance routines. It’s very difficult to get caught up in the suspense and mystery of the story when Britt Eckland’s ridiculous naked dancing never ends. Unfortunately, the awful sing-alongs are present until the very end.
The rest of “The Wicker Man” falls victim to a silly, see-through plot and wooden acting. It's quite obvious from the start in what direction the film is headed, leaving no mystery to entice the audience. And once the mystery is gone, all sense of fear and suspense are out the window as well. By the time the anti-climatic ending rolls around, the story gets so ridiculous, eye-rolling ensues. And a few plot holes keep the credibility to a minimum.
For the so-called “hero” of the film, Edward Woodward’s portrayal of Howie is the epitome of dull. Woodward seems to equate loads of shouting with passionate acting, which is simply not true. It’s always difficult to care about a film when you don’t care about the leading man. Christopher Lee starts out as the menacing leader of Summerisle, but by the time the islanders’ sacred ritual rolled around, Lee shows up in a long dress and woman’s wig, which is far from terrifying but downright hysterical, just like every other element in the film.
The final word: Even though this is considered a classic horror film, the modern viewer should be aware that there is little to fear in the film except bad music and Christopher Lee cross-dressing.
Reader Comments (6)
it's only a classic because so many people talk about how bad it was. Although, the guy burning in the wicker man is definitely a high point for the film.
I think your so called "review" is the epitome of dull.
I saw the film a while back and have to agree with Rachel. Although the remake with Nic Cage is ten times worse.
scary film reviewer: It's a high point, because that when the film finally ends.
old fart: Clever. What are your witty and entertaining thoughts? Please enlighten me, since you seem to be the expert on film review.
Bob: Yes the remake is much worse, bear suit and all. Neither film should've ever been made.
It's not the scariness , it's the oddity of the elements that make the film so great. Yes, I said great. From the amateur camera-angles drawing you into the scenes and the random oddness of various pagan symbology, it creates an undeniable mood that lingers with the viewer. I wouldn't call it scary as much as provocative. And a hippie classic, from the burning of authority to a sound track that oddly shuffles the mood.
Consider how easy the characters undulate and sing while the man burns at the end. The intellectualized emptiness and duplicity of all faiths. It got 7.8 stars and deserves them. I think you focused too much on the music you didn't like. Too bad for you.
LOL, I suppose Thuro can be forgiven this review, once one realizes that she totally missed the point of the film. Its status as a classic is no mystery to me. It's not a horror film at all, though I can see why you might be disappointed if that's what you think it is. It is in fact a film about a collision between paganism, still hanging on in a tiny outpost, and the dominant Christian culture that persecuted and nearly extinguished it. The contrast between the pagan characters' mystical view of the world and the human relationship to it as an integral part of nature, and the Christian view of being apart from and dominant over nature (a sick view, in fact, responsible for the sorry state of the natural world today at the hands of those who plunder and abuse it, rather than nurturing it) is endlessly fascinating. The singing and dancing may not be to your taste, but they effectively illustrate that the inhabitants of Summerisle see nothing horrifying in their lifestyle or methods of worship - they are joyous in what they do, and amused and bemused by what seem the silly ideas of the Christians. The sacrifice of those burned in the Wicker Man is meant to be exactly that, a sacrifice, intended to set their world right again, to restore balance, not to be anything inherently horrible. Hence the singing and dancing. No different than the kinds of sacrifices (and punishments) demanded by the god of the Old Testament. Even compassionate, in a way, since they chose to sacrifice a hostile outsider rather than one of their own.
It explores some of the same themes as heftier works like "The Mists of Avalon". For a low budget film by a small production outfit, it works well. I saw it recently and the mood of it stuck with me for days - in fact, I have ordered a copy for my library. Taken for what it is - not shoehorned into a category in which it does not belong - it is worthy. Apparently many agree with me, since the viewers have rated it 7.8.
Two thumbs up!