Starring: Edward Woodward, Sir Christopher Lee, Britt Ekland
The disappearance of a young girl, Rowan Morrison (Geraldine Cowper), brings policeman Neil Howie (Woodward) to Summerisle, an island off of the Scottish coast. Howie is perplexed that the island's small population seems to have no idea who Rowan even is, and as a devout and conservative Christian is also appalled by their sexualised and heretical society, but is there a more sinister reason for Rowan's disappearance?
Now celebrating its fortieth birthday, The Wicked Man has been re-released in a re-edited "Final Cut". Now acclaimed as being the greatest British horror film ever made, The Wicker Man was pushed out by an ailing British Lion in 1973 as something of an emabarassment, sharing a double-bill with Don't Look Now (another strong contender for best British horror as well) and slowly over the years, the film has gained in stature and footage, long believed lost, has been redeiscovered. This Final Cut is not all the footage known to exist, and some is trimmed from a previous re-edit in 2006 but there's not too much that has significantly changed, save for the film's opening scene (and again there's much of seen in other versions that isn't present here).
A strange beast, The Wicker Man is often categorised as a horror film and whilst this isn't exactly untrue, the film is really more of a mystery with horror elements as well as occasional dashes of comedy and folk music sequences. Edward Woodward gives a powerhouse performance as Howie, boasting a very convincing Scottish accent and playing the right amounts of dignity and incredulity. Christopher Lee plays the rather laid-back and affable Lord Summerisle with his usual refinement whilst Britt Ekland (who would appear opposite Christopher Lee again a year later in The Man With The Golden Gun (1974)) plays the sensuous Willow, daughter of the foppish landlord (played by Lindsay Kemp). Anthony Schaffer's screenplay provides an entertaining and twist-filled mystery that culminates in a notorious finale. If you have never before seem The Wicker Man, I strongly recommend, horror fan or not, you find a screening.
Next time, Cate Blanchett stars as a formerly wealthy woman struggling to cope with the working working-class surroundings of her sister played by Sally Hawkins in Woody Allen's latest film, Blue Jasmine.
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