The Wicker Man (1973)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Robin Hardy

Writer:

Anthony Shaffer (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

June 1975 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

From the writer of 'Frenzy & Sleuth' Anthony Shaffer's incredible occult thriller

Plot:

A police sergeant is called to an island village in search of a missing girl whom the locals claim never existed. Stranger still, however, are the rituals that take place there.

Plot Keywords:

Island | Sergeant | Disappearance | Ritual | Scottish Island

Awards:

1 win & 5 nominations

Cast

Edward Woodward	...	Sergeant Howie
Christopher Lee	...	Lord Summerisle
Diane Cilento	...	Miss Rose
Britt Ekland	...	Willow
Ingrid Pitt	...	Librarian
Lindsay Kemp	...	Alder MacGreagor
Russell Waters	...	Harbour Master
Aubrey Morris	...	Old Gardener / Gravedigger
Irene Sunters	...	May Morrison (also as Irene Sunter)
Walter Carr	...	School Master
Ian Campbell	...	Oak
Leslie Blackater	...	Hairdresser
Roy Boyd	...	Broome
Peter Brewis	...	Musician
Barbara Rafferty	...	Woman with Baby (as Barbara Ann Brown)
Juliet Cadzow	...	Villager on Summerisle (as Juliette Cadzow)
Ross Campbell	...	Communicant
Penny Cluer	...	Gillie
Michael John Cole	...	Musician
Michael Cole	...	Musician
Kevin Collins	...	Old Fisherman
Gerry Cowper	...	Rowan Morrison (as Geraldine Cowper)
Ian Cutler	...	Musician
Donald Eccles	...	T.H. Lennox
Myra Forsyth	...	Mrs. Grimmond
John Hallam	...	P.C. McTaggert
Alison Hughes	...	Fiancée to Howie
Charles Kearney	...	Butcher
Fiona Kennedy	...	Holly
John MacGregor	...	Baker (as John Macgregor)
Jimmy MacKenzie	...	Briar (as Jimmy Mackenzie)
Lesley Mackie	...	Daisy (also as Leslie Mackie)
Jennifer Martin	...	Myrtle Morrison
Bernard Murray	...	Musician
Helen Norman	...	Villager on Summerisle
Lorraine Peters	...	Girl on Grave
Tony Roper	...	Postman
John Sharp	...	Doctor Ewan
Elizabeth Sinclair	...	Villager on Summerisle
Andrew Tompkins	...	Musician
Ian Wilson	...	Communicant
Richard Wren	...	Ash Buchanan
John Young	...	Fishmonger
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
S. Newton Anderson	...	Landers (uncredited)
Paul Giovanni	...	Musician (uncredited)
Robin Hardy	...	Minister (uncredited)

Directed by
Robin Hardy

Writing credits
Anthony Shaffer		(screenplay)
David Pinner		novel "Ritual" (uncredited)

Produced by
Peter Snell	....	producer

Original Music by
Paul Giovanni

Cinematography by
Harry Waxman		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Eric Boyd-Perkins

Casting by
Maggie Cartier

Art Direction by
Seamus Flannery

Costume Design by
Sue Yelland

Makeup Department
Jan Dorman	....	hair stylist
W.T. Partleton	....	makeup artist (as Billy Partleton)

Production Management
Mike Gowans	....	unit manager
Ted Morley	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jake Wright	....	assistant director
Brian W. Cook	....	second assistant director (uncredited)
Vic Smith	....	third assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Richard Rambaut	....	assistant art director (uncredited)

Sound Department
Robin Gregory	....	sound
Bob Jones	....	sound
Vernon Messenger	....	sound editor

Camera and Electrical Department
Peter Allwork	....	photography: second unit
John Brown	....	still photographer
James Devis	....	camera operator (as Jimmy Devis)
Mike Drew	....	focus puller
Ken Worringham	....	camera operator (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Masada Wilmot	....	wardrobe supervisor

Editorial Department
Denis Whitehouse	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Gary Carpenter	....	associate musical director
Magnet	....	music performers

Other crew
Beryl Harvey	....	production secretary
Stewart Hopps	....	choreographer
Frank Law	....	publicist
Susanna Merry	....	continuity (as Sue Merry)
Jilda Smith	....	location manager
Craig Miller	....	marketing consultant (uncredited)
Annie Ross	....	dubbing voice: Britt Ekland (uncredited)

Production Companies

• British Lion Film Corporation (presents) (as British Lion)

Distributors

• British Lion Film Corporation (1973) (UK) (theatrical)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2008) (USA) (DVD)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (USA) (VHS)
• Channel 4 Television Corporation (2001) (UK) (TV) (directors cut)
• Kinowelt Home Entertainment (2009) (Germany) (DVD)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV3) (1986) (2003) (2005) (Finland) (TV)
• Media Home Entertainment (1978) (USA) (VHS)
• R-Video (1983) (Finland) (video)
• Studio Canal (2002) (UK) (video)
• SubTV (2005) (Finland) (TV)
• Universal Pictures Finland Oy (2006) (Finland) (DVD)
• VTI Home Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• Warner Bros. Pictures (1975) (USA)
• Warner Home Video
• Works Editora (2004) (Brazil) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Anthony Shaffer's The Wicker Man (UK) (complete title)
The Wickerman (Europe: English title) (alternative spelling)

Runtime:

88 min | 100 min (2001 director's cut) (25 fps)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | South Africa:(Banned) | Finland:K-18 (2006) (DVD) | Finland:K-16 (1983) (self applied) (video) | Germany:16 | Australia:M (DVD rating) | Australia:R (original rating) | Ireland:15 (re-rating) (2002) | Ireland:18 (original rating) | Norway:16 (1974) | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | UK:15 (video re-rating) (2002) | UK:18 (video rating) (1990) | UK:X (original rating) | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Burrow Head, Isle of Whithorn, Dumfries & Galloway, Scotland, UK

Company:

British Lion Film Corporation

Trivia:

Until 2009 this film was never officially released in Germany. Only then it was released on DVD by Kinowelt (however, since it was not released before, without a German dub).

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: In the director's cut, there's a scene where the bar-owner is tied up to the bed. A few seconds before it cuts away, a crew-member's leg can be seen on the left hand side.

Quotes:

Daisy Pringle: The little old beetle goes 'round and 'round. Always the same way, y'see, until it ends up right up tight to the nail. Poor old thing!
Sergeant Howie: 'Poor old thing'? Then why in God's name do you do it, girl?

Movie Connections:

Featured in Britain's 50 Greatest Comedy Sketches (2005) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Gently Johnny

Creative, entertaining and tragic. A beautiful picture.

‘The Wicker Man' follows the story of Sgt. Howie (Edward Woodward) who travels to the Scottish island of Summerisle to investigate the disappearance of a young girl. However, the entire population of the island, including the girl's own mother (Irene Summers), denies that such a girl ever existed and as the righteous Howie investigates further he learns the terrifying truth of Summerisle.

Famed for an exceptional yet short performance from the legendary Christopher Lee as Lord Summerisle, ‘The Wicker Man' is a textbook example of how to create a virtually seamless horror/thriller. Director Robin Hardy at one point thought this low-budget movie would never be made as he was forced to work with a very small budget, a short shooting schedule and a studio on the verge of bankruptcy that was in fact declared bankrupt just a few short months after filming was completed. However, ‘The Wicker Man' was made and nowadays is accepted as one of the finest horror/thrillers of all-time despite not receiving the praise it so deserved back in the Seventies. ‘The Wicker Man' was brilliantly written by Anthony Shaffer who chose to add very subtle clues as to what would happen that are made more apparent on further viewings. With the added advantage of obvious research into the pagan rituals ‘The Wicker Man' sought to portray the movie is left with a chilling feel of realism.

An enchanting soundtrack is blended marvellously into ‘The Wicker Man' which seems to lull the viewer into a false sense of security. Despite the constant foreboding feeling created by the intricate plot and top notch acting, there is a certain playful feeling that is brought about by the elegant soundtrack making it difficult to actually envisage any evil events occuring. One could be forgiven for wondering on a first viewing just where this bizarre little movie is going but the story has a quality about it that can grab the viewer and keep their interest all the way to the bitter and awfully haunting ending. The final scene as the credits roll is an image that is now engrained on my mind with all its emptiness and despair. As the curtain falls on this performance (so to speak) it becomes hard not to question the events leading up to the end and the humanity of these islanders. In some ways ‘The Wicker Man' is an unsettling history lesson that makes itself seem all too real.

Edward Woodward gives a tremendous performance as the increasingly baffled Sgt. Howie. He played his character convincingly and Howie's eventual realisation of what is going on around him is portrayed so well that it adds more realism to the movie. Woodward was able to take a character that may be a figure of loathing in another type of horror movie and make the audience feel empathy towards him. The strong religious beliefs within Howie thoroughly clash with the free-loving pagan society which adds humour and distress at the same time. However, as mentioned before, Christopher Lee somehow stole the show playing the relatively small part of Lord Summerisle. His magnificent onscreen presence seems so powerful that one forgets that he is only in the movie for a short amount of time. Added to this great mix was Britt Ekland as Willow, the beautiful landlord's daughter. Her seductive, nude dance (though a double was apparently used in parts) was one of the most erotic moments in horror and helped to contribute further realism to the movie. The scenes featuring the clashing characters of Howie and Willow are both amusing and tense making for some interesting character interaction.

‘The Wicker Man' is undoubtedly a cult classic of the horror genre which I recommend to all fans of horror/thrillers. Visually pleasing with some superb acting and direction as well as a fine screenplay. My rating for ‘The Wicker Man' – 9/10.