A classic film that not only endures but continues to inspire half a century later is a true marvel. Celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, The Wicker Man helped popularize the folk horror genre that continues to flourish with the likes of Midsommar, The Witch, and The Ritual. Its impact extends beyond cinema, from inspiring Radiohead (“Burn the Witch”) and Iron Maiden (“The Wicker Man”) songs to being included in the 2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony.
In the film, Sergeant Neil Howie travels from the mainland to the Scottish island of Summerisle to investigate the disappearance of a young girl. The devout Christian is appalled to learn that the islanders practice a form of paganism characterized by blasphemous beliefs, degeneracy, doublespeak, and peculiar customs. Like The Bride of Frankenstein, the namesake doesn’t show up until the final moments of the film, but it leaves an indelible impression long after the credits roll.
In the film, Sergeant Neil Howie travels from the mainland to the Scottish island of Summerisle to investigate the disappearance of a young girl. The devout Christian is appalled to learn that the islanders practice a form of paganism characterized by blasphemous beliefs, degeneracy, doublespeak, and peculiar customs. Like The Bride of Frankenstein, the namesake doesn’t show up until the final moments of the film, but it leaves an indelible impression long after the credits roll.
- 11/3/2023
- by Alex DiVincenzo
- bloody-disgusting.com
To celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the folk-horror classic, The Wicker Man, we are giving away The Wicker Man Posters Signed by Britt Ekland to 3 lucky winners!
Studiocanal is delighted to release a glorious new 4K restoration of The Wicker Man. All three versions of the film; The Final Cut, The Director’s Cut and The Theatrical Cut, have been painstakingly restored and will be released in an exclusive 5-disc Collector’s Edition as well as a 4-isc Steelbook version. The Final Cut will also be available on Digital from September 25th.
It Is Time To Keep Your Appointment With The Wicker Man. In the 50 years since its original release, The Wicker Man has achieved true cult status as one of the most revered horror films in cinema history, despite a difficult production and heavily cut original theatrical release. The search for the fabled missing scenes has only added to...
Studiocanal is delighted to release a glorious new 4K restoration of The Wicker Man. All three versions of the film; The Final Cut, The Director’s Cut and The Theatrical Cut, have been painstakingly restored and will be released in an exclusive 5-disc Collector’s Edition as well as a 4-isc Steelbook version. The Final Cut will also be available on Digital from September 25th.
It Is Time To Keep Your Appointment With The Wicker Man. In the 50 years since its original release, The Wicker Man has achieved true cult status as one of the most revered horror films in cinema history, despite a difficult production and heavily cut original theatrical release. The search for the fabled missing scenes has only added to...
- 9/27/2023
- by Competitions
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Stars: Edward Woodward, Christopher Lee, Diane Cilento, Britt Ekland, Ingrid Pitt, Lindsay Kemp, Aubrey Morris | Written by Anthony Shaffer | Directed by Robin Hardy
It’s time once again for us to keep our appointment with The Wicker Man but this time as we’ve not seen him before. After long-thought to be lost footage was found and director Robin Hardy got back in the Wicker-way after the admittedly terrible sequel The Wicker Tree, we have here what is promised to be the ideal version of the film though interestingly, it’s not the most ” complete” version. Running longer than the truncated initial theatrical cut but shorter than the more recent Director’s Cut, this is instead an assemlage supervised by Hardy himself which is most true to what he believes is his intended version of the film.
Instead of being a Never Before Seen, Holy Crap Look At That Bit,...
It’s time once again for us to keep our appointment with The Wicker Man but this time as we’ve not seen him before. After long-thought to be lost footage was found and director Robin Hardy got back in the Wicker-way after the admittedly terrible sequel The Wicker Tree, we have here what is promised to be the ideal version of the film though interestingly, it’s not the most ” complete” version. Running longer than the truncated initial theatrical cut but shorter than the more recent Director’s Cut, this is instead an assemlage supervised by Hardy himself which is most true to what he believes is his intended version of the film.
Instead of being a Never Before Seen, Holy Crap Look At That Bit,...
- 10/17/2013
- by Ian Loring
- Nerdly
Every year, we here at Sound On Sight celebrate the month of October with 31 Days of Horror; and every year, I update the list of my favourite horror films ever made. Last year, I released a list that included 150 picks. This year, I’ll be upgrading the list, making minor alterations, changing the rankings, adding new entries, and possibly removing a few titles. I’ve also decided to publish each post backwards this time for one reason: the new additions appear lower on my list, whereas my top 50 haven’t changed much, except for maybe in ranking. Enjoy!
Special Mention:
Michael Jackson’s groundbreaking dance routines and unique vocals have influenced generations of musicians, dancers, and entertainers. He was one of entertainment’s greatest icons, and like most gifted individuals, he was always pushing boundaries, reinventing himself, and testing his limits. One of his biggest accomplishments was Thriller, a 14-minute...
Special Mention:
Michael Jackson’s groundbreaking dance routines and unique vocals have influenced generations of musicians, dancers, and entertainers. He was one of entertainment’s greatest icons, and like most gifted individuals, he was always pushing boundaries, reinventing himself, and testing his limits. One of his biggest accomplishments was Thriller, a 14-minute...
- 10/17/2013
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
This new version of a cult British horror contains nothing to surprise the aficionado but is satisfying nonetheless
Reading on mobile? Watch the trailer here
Summer is icumen in… again. Longer than the shortest cut, but still shorter than the longest, this cleaned up "middle version" of the cult British horror classic about a puritanical policeman chasing his tail on a pagan island contains no surprises for Summerisle regulars. The old weaknesses remain (the risible dubbing and body-doubling of Britt Ekland, Hardy's often clunky direction) but the strengths are overpowering; Edward Woodward's towering performance, Anthony Shaffer's brilliantly nasty script, Paul Giovanni's weirdie folk music, and that matchlessly horrifying ending. Cut down to B-picture length on initial release, The Wicker Man now exists in several versions which variously satisfy fans and creators. Meanwhile, Ken Russell's restored cut of The Devils (another mistreated early 1970s British chiller) languishes...
Reading on mobile? Watch the trailer here
Summer is icumen in… again. Longer than the shortest cut, but still shorter than the longest, this cleaned up "middle version" of the cult British horror classic about a puritanical policeman chasing his tail on a pagan island contains no surprises for Summerisle regulars. The old weaknesses remain (the risible dubbing and body-doubling of Britt Ekland, Hardy's often clunky direction) but the strengths are overpowering; Edward Woodward's towering performance, Anthony Shaffer's brilliantly nasty script, Paul Giovanni's weirdie folk music, and that matchlessly horrifying ending. Cut down to B-picture length on initial release, The Wicker Man now exists in several versions which variously satisfy fans and creators. Meanwhile, Ken Russell's restored cut of The Devils (another mistreated early 1970s British chiller) languishes...
- 9/28/2013
- by Mark Kermode
- The Guardian - Film News
Director Robin Hardy and musical director Gary Carpenter remember a descent into paganism that started in a Manhattan hotel room and ended up with the film company rubbishing their own work
Robin Hardy, director
I was making commercials in the Us and doing very well. Then a film company sent the writer Anthony Shaffer out to lure me back to the UK. When I opened my door in Manhattan, he said: "I am with the FBI and we are investigating you to see if you have communist sympathies." It was the first of many jokes.
We spent a weekend devising the plot, about a policeman called Howie who is lured to a Scottish island to investigate a missing girl; he is ultimately sacrificed by the pagan locals to save their apple crop. Paganism gave us lots of ideas, like the little girl being given a frog to put in her throat to stop it hurting.
Robin Hardy, director
I was making commercials in the Us and doing very well. Then a film company sent the writer Anthony Shaffer out to lure me back to the UK. When I opened my door in Manhattan, he said: "I am with the FBI and we are investigating you to see if you have communist sympathies." It was the first of many jokes.
We spent a weekend devising the plot, about a policeman called Howie who is lured to a Scottish island to investigate a missing girl; he is ultimately sacrificed by the pagan locals to save their apple crop. Paganism gave us lots of ideas, like the little girl being given a frog to put in her throat to stop it hurting.
- 9/24/2013
- by Dave Simpson
- The Guardian - Film News
Mick Garris' House of Horrors concludes at Trailers from Hell with director Garris introducing 1973's "The Wicker Man."It's Christianity vs. Paganism and Guess Who comes out on top in Robin Hardy's cult classic which initially suffered from poor distribution but is now widely considered a landmark horror film. Partially instigated by star Christopher Lee (it's his favorite role), who is mysteriously absent from this confusing British trailer. Paul Giovanni's memorable Celtic song score nearly qualifies this as a musical. Various cuts exist, the longest being 102 minutes (beware shorter versions). Remade, sort of, in 2007 by Tfh Guru Neil Labute. Director Hardy helmed a 2011 offshoot, The Wicker Tree, with a Lee cameo, and hopes to have the last of his "trilogy", The Wrath of the Gods, in theaters by 2013.StudioCanal recently launched a campaign to retrieve original elements missing from the film; they intend to restore it for...
- 6/21/2013
- by Trailers From Hell
- Thompson on Hollywood
The Wicker Man is a cult horror classic. Are the team of Scots who have turned the film into a musical – and rejigged its shocking ending – worried about offending fans?
The Wicker Man is easily one of the weirdest films ever made. Shot on location in Scotland, the 1973 movie tells the story of a devout policeman who travels to a remote Hebridean island to investigate the disappearance of a young girl, only to discover that the locals have reverted to pagan practices, using human sacrifice to safeguard their crops. Produced on a minuscule budget, with a cast who had to suck on ice cubes to stop their breath from showing in the cold, the film featured career-defining performances from Edward Woodward as Sergeant Howie and Christopher Lee as the sinister Lord Summerisle. Lee has since said it's his best film.
Practically unnoticed on its release (it was cut to an...
The Wicker Man is easily one of the weirdest films ever made. Shot on location in Scotland, the 1973 movie tells the story of a devout policeman who travels to a remote Hebridean island to investigate the disappearance of a young girl, only to discover that the locals have reverted to pagan practices, using human sacrifice to safeguard their crops. Produced on a minuscule budget, with a cast who had to suck on ice cubes to stop their breath from showing in the cold, the film featured career-defining performances from Edward Woodward as Sergeant Howie and Christopher Lee as the sinister Lord Summerisle. Lee has since said it's his best film.
Practically unnoticed on its release (it was cut to an...
- 2/16/2012
- by Alfred Hickling
- The Guardian - Film News
Wicker Man
Directed by Robin Hardy
Screenplay by Anthony Shaffer
1974, UK
There is no denying that this early ’70s British export cries-crosses genres as easily as it defies audience expectations; even today, for first time viewers. Robin Hardy’s The Wicker Man is a film that rejects categorization; it can be considered a horror film, but also a psychological thriller, a musical, a melodrama but perhaps it is best described as a prime example of a short-lived sub-genre known as “folk horror”.
Arguably one of the greatest cult films to emerge from England, The Wicker Man presents the pagan elements objectively and accurately – accompanied by authentic and stirring traditional Celtic music, a believable, contemporary setting (shot around a remote Scottish isle) and with riveting performances by the ensemble cast.
The film’s production history is as infamous as the movie itself. The Wicker Man was a misunderstood work of art passed through several unsympathetic distributors,...
Directed by Robin Hardy
Screenplay by Anthony Shaffer
1974, UK
There is no denying that this early ’70s British export cries-crosses genres as easily as it defies audience expectations; even today, for first time viewers. Robin Hardy’s The Wicker Man is a film that rejects categorization; it can be considered a horror film, but also a psychological thriller, a musical, a melodrama but perhaps it is best described as a prime example of a short-lived sub-genre known as “folk horror”.
Arguably one of the greatest cult films to emerge from England, The Wicker Man presents the pagan elements objectively and accurately – accompanied by authentic and stirring traditional Celtic music, a believable, contemporary setting (shot around a remote Scottish isle) and with riveting performances by the ensemble cast.
The film’s production history is as infamous as the movie itself. The Wicker Man was a misunderstood work of art passed through several unsympathetic distributors,...
- 2/15/2012
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
Long after its world premiere last July at the Fantasia International film Festival here in Montreal sharply divided viewers, Robin Hardy’s long-in-the-works sorta-sequel to his famed cult classic The Wicker Man is finally making its way to theaters – nearly 40 years after the first film opened. Justine, Ricky and Simon offer their takes on the new flick, as well as taking a look back at the 1973 original.
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All music is taken from Paul Giovanni’s original soundtrack to The Wicker Man.
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All music is taken from Paul Giovanni’s original soundtrack to The Wicker Man.
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- Listen on iTunes RSS feeds Twitter Facebook Tumblr Podcast Feed...
- 2/4/2012
- by Simon Howell
- SoundOnSight
Halloween’s almost upon us, and to mark the occasion, Glen’s delved into the archives to find his favourite horror movie scores…
Good readers, it’s that time of year again. The time when it’s acceptable to wander the streets dressed like a psycho killer and not get arrested for it. It’s also the time of year when there’ll be all manner of Halloween parties, and while some will no doubt resort to lazily playing Monster Mash and Thriller on a loop, I can’t help but feel it would be better if people would dig into some great horror scores to add a suitably spooky atmosphere to proceedings.
A great score can make or break a horror film. With this in mind, here are some of my favourite horror movie scores, as well as some suggestions from some well-informed writers I converse with.
Hellraiser – Christopher Young...
Good readers, it’s that time of year again. The time when it’s acceptable to wander the streets dressed like a psycho killer and not get arrested for it. It’s also the time of year when there’ll be all manner of Halloween parties, and while some will no doubt resort to lazily playing Monster Mash and Thriller on a loop, I can’t help but feel it would be better if people would dig into some great horror scores to add a suitably spooky atmosphere to proceedings.
A great score can make or break a horror film. With this in mind, here are some of my favourite horror movie scores, as well as some suggestions from some well-informed writers I converse with.
Hellraiser – Christopher Young...
- 10/24/2011
- Den of Geek
Christopher Lee in The Wicker Man
By Mark Mawston
Normal 0 false false false En-us X-none X-none
With Halloween fast approaching I thought I might recommend some films that seem to have found themselves, bar one or two, languishing in DVD dungeons like forgotten prisoners.
There are many recognized classics of the genre from The Omen and The Exorcist to The Haunting, as well as the Universal classics such as Frankenstein, Dracula and The Mummy but some of what I humbly call classics seldom, if ever, get a chance to shine. To try and set this straight before the witching hour strikes, I like to recommend a few films, 13 to be precise, that you may have missed or could perhaps re visit during this spookiest time of year.
13) Night Of The Eagle:
This superb British Witchcraft tale (known under the more lurid title Burn Witch Burn in the U.S.
By Mark Mawston
Normal 0 false false false En-us X-none X-none
With Halloween fast approaching I thought I might recommend some films that seem to have found themselves, bar one or two, languishing in DVD dungeons like forgotten prisoners.
There are many recognized classics of the genre from The Omen and The Exorcist to The Haunting, as well as the Universal classics such as Frankenstein, Dracula and The Mummy but some of what I humbly call classics seldom, if ever, get a chance to shine. To try and set this straight before the witching hour strikes, I like to recommend a few films, 13 to be precise, that you may have missed or could perhaps re visit during this spookiest time of year.
13) Night Of The Eagle:
This superb British Witchcraft tale (known under the more lurid title Burn Witch Burn in the U.S.
- 10/16/2011
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
We continue our look back at the classic horror film The Wicker Man, to read the first part of this feature please click here.
And so to the late, great Edward Woodward himself, who inspires great confidence as Sergeant Howie, a man whose unfettered dogged persistence defies all who stand before him in his pursuit of answers.
A key scene in understanding Howie comes when, upon visiting the school house, he is shocked to discover the school mistress (played by Diane Cilento, a former Mrs. Sean Connery and widow of screenwriter Anthony Schaffer) teaching her young class the phallic importance of the maypole. Approaching an empty desk he assumes to belong to Rowan Morrison (the missing girl at the centre of the mystery) he is surprised to discover a small beetle tied to a piece of string running endless circles around a small nail with no apparent meaning or purpose.
And so to the late, great Edward Woodward himself, who inspires great confidence as Sergeant Howie, a man whose unfettered dogged persistence defies all who stand before him in his pursuit of answers.
A key scene in understanding Howie comes when, upon visiting the school house, he is shocked to discover the school mistress (played by Diane Cilento, a former Mrs. Sean Connery and widow of screenwriter Anthony Schaffer) teaching her young class the phallic importance of the maypole. Approaching an empty desk he assumes to belong to Rowan Morrison (the missing girl at the centre of the mystery) he is surprised to discover a small beetle tied to a piece of string running endless circles around a small nail with no apparent meaning or purpose.
- 11/25/2010
- by Nick Turk
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
The weekend’s here. You’ve just been paid, and it’s burning a hole in your pocket. What’s a pop culture geek to do? In hopes of steering you in the right direction to blow some of that hard-earned cash, it’s time for the Fred Weekend Shopping Guide - your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…
(Please support Fred by using the links below to make any impulse purchases - it helps to keep us going…)
Like Citizen Kane and Casablanca, the original King Kong (Warner Bros., Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$34.98 Srp) is one of the many gems in the Warner Bros. library. While we don’t have our high definition Kane yet, the restoration and mastering done on this new Kong is simply breathtaking, and give me high hopes for their treatment of Welles’ legendary flick. Bonus features on this new edition include an audio commentary,...
(Please support Fred by using the links below to make any impulse purchases - it helps to keep us going…)
Like Citizen Kane and Casablanca, the original King Kong (Warner Bros., Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$34.98 Srp) is one of the many gems in the Warner Bros. library. While we don’t have our high definition Kane yet, the restoration and mastering done on this new Kong is simply breathtaking, and give me high hopes for their treatment of Welles’ legendary flick. Bonus features on this new edition include an audio commentary,...
- 10/1/2010
- by UncaScroogeMcD
This made-for-tv 1991 film was issued by Warner Home Video to cash in on the Blu-ray/DVD release of Sherlock Holmes, Guy Ritchie's recent big budget reworking of Conan Doyle's great detective. Based on a play of the same name by Paul Giovanni, The Crucifer of Blood starts off as a reasonable adaption of Conan Doyle's 'The Sign of the Four'. It soon devolves, however, into a tedious mish-mash of elements from different Holmes stories.
Like the original story, the plot takes, as its starting point, a murder at the gates of the Fort of Agra during the mutiny in British colonial India. Among the murderers is a British soldier who is embroiled in the plot by locals with the promise that they will share with him the treasure the victim is transporting. Things become complicated when the plot is discovered by two British officers. These jolly chaps...
Like the original story, the plot takes, as its starting point, a murder at the gates of the Fort of Agra during the mutiny in British colonial India. Among the murderers is a British soldier who is embroiled in the plot by locals with the promise that they will share with him the treasure the victim is transporting. Things become complicated when the plot is discovered by two British officers. These jolly chaps...
- 7/27/2010
- CinemaSpy
Undertones: Volume 7 It's the time of the year again where folks' minds turn to the macabre and the ghoulish; where death is celebrated rather than feared and of course, when dusty copies of horror films are taken off the shelf to terrify and amuse. So, in honor of the Halloween season it would seem only right that this installment of Undertones concern itself with the scores of horror films or, more specifically, those that emerged during a particularly groundbreaking and ultra-violent decade of cinema - the 1970s. Many of the horror films of the 1970s did not involve supernatural beings such as vampires, werewolves and swamp things, but the terrors of home and society at large. The menacing figures of films such as Texas Chainsaw Massacre (Hooper, 1974) and Halloween (Carpenter, 1978) may have worn crazy masks and looked decidedly 'un-human' but the messages these films posited concerned themselves with that of...
- 11/3/2009
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
Quick, what’s the scariest horror film score out there? I’m sure a couple of no-brainers came to mind, and a few of you probably thought of something wholly original. Thanks to the Cinemagic channel on Sirius Xm, we have an official list to choose from. There are a few shocking inclusions, and a couple of omissions, one that I, myself, deem glaring.
See for yourself:
Halloween John Carpenter 1
Psycho Bernard Herrmann 2
The Shining Wendy Carlos/Assorted 3
Jaws John Williams 4
Alien Jerry Goldsmith 5
Omen, The Jerry Goldsmith 6
Bride of Frankenstein Franz Waxman 7
Thing, The Ennio Morricone 8
Exorcist, The Pendereki 9
Fog, The John Carpenter 10
Rosemary’s Baby Christopher Komeda 11
Hellraiser Christopher Young 12
Friday the 13th Harry Manfredini 13
A Nightmare on Elm Street Charles Bernstein 14
Suspira Goblin 15
Poltergeist Jerry Goldsmith 16
Changeling, The Rick Williams 17
Dawn of the Dead Assorted 18
Haunted Palace, The Ronald Stein 19
Amityville Horror, The Lalo Schifrin 20
Creepshow John...
See for yourself:
Halloween John Carpenter 1
Psycho Bernard Herrmann 2
The Shining Wendy Carlos/Assorted 3
Jaws John Williams 4
Alien Jerry Goldsmith 5
Omen, The Jerry Goldsmith 6
Bride of Frankenstein Franz Waxman 7
Thing, The Ennio Morricone 8
Exorcist, The Pendereki 9
Fog, The John Carpenter 10
Rosemary’s Baby Christopher Komeda 11
Hellraiser Christopher Young 12
Friday the 13th Harry Manfredini 13
A Nightmare on Elm Street Charles Bernstein 14
Suspira Goblin 15
Poltergeist Jerry Goldsmith 16
Changeling, The Rick Williams 17
Dawn of the Dead Assorted 18
Haunted Palace, The Ronald Stein 19
Amityville Horror, The Lalo Schifrin 20
Creepshow John...
- 10/30/2009
- by Kirk
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Filmmaker was delighted to the following email today, which began: "From the ashes of Kim's video come's The Third Floor, a new group of curators devoted to presenting to you, the general public, movies we like. In just the right way. On a screen. With some bands. Somewhere that you can drink. With all your friends. For money." Together with 92YTribeca, this collective of former-employees and devotees of the late, great, irreplaceable Kim's Video is starting a screening series. It begins October 30th with The Wicker Man, a 1973 cult horror masterpiece featuring Britt Ecklund and Christopher Lee. Following the evening’s screening, there will be performances inspired by the folklore inspiration for Paul Giovanni's trippy-creepy original...
- 10/12/2009
- by Alicia Van Couvering
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
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