Review of The Wicker Man (1973) by Spencer S — 18 Mar 2015
It's very difficult to have anything incisive to say about this horror film, because it is so strange and otherworldly. An English policeman, who has rigorous moral and religious attitudes, arrives at a secluded island where a town of people celebrates public sex and nudity, sexual education, and unconventional methods of communication and discourse.
The policeman finds these heathens wanting and tells them so at every opportunity. He is looking for a missing child, who he believes has been murdered by this island of cultists, and so he has little patience for them.
Throughout the movie there are interspersed scenes of sexual congress in the fields of the lush isle, and gleeful pagan music. There's no religion, which chafes the officer, and lends to outbursts aimed at all manner of people.
It's strange that he has no patience for these people, when they exist throughout England, but it does lend to a tension that keeps us guessing throughout the entire film. The twist was obvious from the outset, and the symbolism of these pagans leans more towards fanatical Christianity's worst fear, but otherwise it was definitely an unsettling film.
This review of The Wicker Man (1973) was written by Spencer S on 18 Mar 2015.
The Wicker Man has generally received mixed reviews.
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