The Wicker Man (1973)
“The building attached to the ground in which the body lies is no longer used for Christian worship, so whether it is still a churchyard is debatable.” – Miss Rose
The Wicker Man tells the story of a police officer, Sergeant Howie, who travels to a secluded island community to investigate the disappearance of a young girl. What ensues is a complex game of cat-and-mouse as Howie clashes with the less-than-helpful locals in an attempt to uncover a mystery that does not seem to have a rational explanation. One thing that becomes clear, watching the film over 30 years after its release, is how many scenes and elements have become awkwardly comical. Now this is not to say that moments meant to be frightening have evolved to produce the opposite effect. In fact, it is very difficult to predict what reactions filmmakers intended due to the consistent degree of obscurity present throughout the film. Nevertheless, these moments, funny or scary, retain their ability to unsettle the viewer in a variety of incomprehensible ways. The newfound humour functions only to strengthen the satire of the film that blatantly criticises religious fanaticism by juxtaposing a devout Christian lawman, who remains short-sighted to possibilities outside of his own divine worship, and an island of pagan traditionalists, who believe in ancient gods and rituals abhorrent to Sergeant Howie’s pleas for Christian intervention.
The Wicker Man tells the story of a police officer, Sergeant Howie, who travels to a secluded island community to investigate the disappearance of a young girl. What ensues is a complex game of cat-and-mouse as Howie clashes with the less-than-helpful locals in an attempt to uncover a mystery that does not seem to have a rational explanation. One thing that becomes clear, watching the film over 30 years after its release, is how many scenes and elements have become awkwardly comical. Now this is not to say that moments meant to be frightening have evolved to produce the opposite effect. In fact, it is very difficult to predict what reactions filmmakers intended due to the consistent degree of obscurity present throughout the film. Nevertheless, these moments, funny or scary, retain their ability to unsettle the viewer in a variety of incomprehensible ways. The newfound humour functions only to strengthen the satire of the film that blatantly criticises religious fanaticism by juxtaposing a devout Christian lawman, who remains short-sighted to possibilities outside of his own divine worship, and an island of pagan traditionalists, who believe in ancient gods and rituals abhorrent to Sergeant Howie’s pleas for Christian intervention.
The final moments of the film are perhaps its most lucid: as Sergeant Howie waits to make his final sacrifice, he shouts and begs Summerisle’s inhabitants to listen to reason and rationality as defined by his Christian law. Howie has been raised and nurtured in a world that blinds him to possibilities outside conventional civilization. Summerisle itself is a microcosm to its own inhabitants, who are similarly raised and reasoned into an environment that sincerely believes that dance, song, and sacrifice will ensure a fruitful harvest in the coming year. Together, these two religious forces are equally ignorant, and equally apathetic, to each other’s cries for reason. The timelessness of this message and the film’s uncanny ability to unsettle any audience, help it to remain as contemporary and relevant today, as it was in 1973.
A final warning: do not watch the Nicholas Cage remake. It is garbage.
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