The Wicker Man (2013)

Why so much hype?

A Disappointing Continuation

A different way of telling a story

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

A compelling mystery thriller. Great location shoot with a great cast - stoic Woodward, dramatic Lee and gorgeous Ekland all give fabulous performances. OK some of the 70's 'styles' look a little daft these days but it's one I'll always have another watch of. Please don't judge it by the totally awful remake with Nicholas Cage.

Traveling to a secretive island, a mainland police detective investigating a child abduction case finds the locals practice a pagan-like religion that hinders his quest as the more he reveals about it the gradual realization of his appearance there is revealed and must stop it from happening.This here was quite the fun if a really flawed effort. One of the few problems here is the fact that there are some really bland and unappealing folk songs throughout here that just make this one feel overlong and quite bland. The numerous musical interludes really overwhelm this one as they're not that good and really don't offer up much of anything for the film other than getting in some nice innuendo, but on the whole it's not that appealing to stop the film cold to feature yet another suggestive local song-and-dance that's already mentioned before or to have an utterly obnoxious folklore tune continually play out. There's also a rather big problem here with the central mystery that unfolds here, simply providing a series of behavior that he finds weird only due to the contrast against the Christian ideologies he keeps spouting off yet none of these events really have much of a horror or even suspense setup as their standoff-ish behavior and mysterious rituals don't have any building suspense. The whole first hour plays out like a sardonic fish-out-of-water tale rather than any kind of macabre overview of a horror film as it boils down to a continuous series of run-ins with free-spirited folks who stonewall his investigations and scoff as his views of their practices which really hinders the film somewhat. There's still a lot to like here despite these issues, as there's a wicked air under the surface here as the weirdness of their transgressions slowly reveals far more menacing tones. The way it shows their attention to the pagan religion spurning his efforts with their brazen worship of paganism iconography and symbolism, the lax attitude to sexuality that shows copious couplings in public spaces, nude worshipping practices and the induction of children into sexually explicit conversations which are then thrown back at him with a rather easy-going dismissal that works a rather involving mystery here as they overlay these with the slowly unfolding mystery about the girl. This is certainly aiding nicely with the events of the finale which is undoubtedly the highlight here with the absolutely crazy ritual procession through the town as the garish costumes and jovial dancing creates some fully impressive sequence which comes off nicely alongside the central twist here that makes for a truly harrowing and cruel twist that really works well here. That gives this a considerable amount of good parts over the flaws, and along with the fine nudity throughout gives this a lot to really enjoy about this one.Rated R: Full Nudity, Violence, Language, some sexual conduct and intense themes of children-in-jeopardy.

The Wicker Man (1973) its a movie that has gained notoriety as time has passed since it was released. Its been called the "Citizen Kane" of horror movies but I don't think that's necessarily true. Its a really good movie and has some interesting ideas and themes and its executed almost perfectly but its not as great as something like The Exorcist or Rosemary's Baby, at least, I don't think it is.I cant think of anything that I dislike about this film, its well directed, well written, well acted, well everything, but it doesn't strike me as one of the best horror films ever made, I would say that its one of the best from the seventies.I have to say that I didn't find the ending to be satisfying, its really well made and its perhaps the most iconic scene in the movie, but I was really rooting for our main character, I just think that the ending is too much of a downer, but that's just me, otherwise, its a great movie.

British film director Robin Hardy, who passed away this year at the age of 86, only made three movies during his lifetime, and his debut feature THE WICKER MAN, now has undergone a long way to become a religious horror cult after its initial cold shoulder from critics and audience upon its release in its home turf. In the brief preface before the opening credits, Sergeant Howie (Woodward) is seen as a devout Christian, which underpins his martyr-status like Jesus in the Eucharist. Shortly after, the film relocates entirely on an Scottish island, Summerisle, where Howie comes to tackle with the case of a missing young girl, only gets increasingly miffed and discombobulated through the investigation where Celtic paganism is blatantly worshipped by its villagers, what's more horrific is that his advent is completely premeditated with a hidden agenda, and there is absolutely no way for him to leave this insular place.Far from being a conventional jump-scare horror fare, a salient feature of THE WICKER MAN is its mysterious set-up towards the final money-shot, which is constituted of a magnanimous supply of ethereal folk songs, often in diegetic forms, imbues a distinctly ritualistic otherworldliness, where symptoms of degeneration and heresy suffuse the film: the flagrant lies, the open-air lovemaking (with women uniformly stay on top), the eroticized close-up of a snail as an emblem of carnal consummation, the unorthodox teaching school children about phallic worship, a frog-swallowing medical treatment, a wriggling nude dance of telepathic seduction, the May Day celebration with animal costumes, masquerades and escapades. To a modern viewer who takes a more clement slant on religious persuasion, these sequences are mind-opening, palatably surreal, anything but threatening if they are not benighted enough to believe in human sacrifice. However, that is the road where this lucid story heads, the collision course between Christianity and paganism is inexorable, Hardy and screenwriter Anthony Shaffer pull no punches to leave its audience downright astonished, refuse to tamper the ending with a deus ex machina. So that is all she writes, a cunningly composed tale of religion foolery to an appalling effect. Certainly Sgt. Howie doesn't deserve this denouement, but surprisingly, there is less pathos out of it, since Woodward's stern and self-righteous performance doesn't make him a sympathetic hero, he is obstinately blunt and incredulously naive, could he have been more tactful and less religion- frenetic, at least, he would have find some ally among the folks, perhaps someone who hasn't been completely brainwashed by Lord Summerisle (Lee), thus it would turn out to be another story less confrontational. Overall, the cast is adequately one-dimensional, save the almighty Christopher Lee, who is visibly relishing in his suave and eloquent mastermind persona, a true form of evil but a charismatic villain who can compellingly entrance his adherents.With the iconic "wicker man" image immutably leaving an indelible fingerprint on audience's mind, Robin Hardy's one-hit-wonder promisingly retains its inimitable appeal by coalescing the horror genre with such inherently incongruous epithets as gaily, lilting and a hero's undoing.