A puritan police sergeant arrives in a Scottish island village in search of a missing girl, who the pagan locals claim never existed.A puritan police sergeant arrives in a Scottish island village in search of a missing girl, who the pagan locals claim never existed.A puritan police sergeant arrives in a Scottish island village in search of a missing girl, who the pagan locals claim never existed.
- Awards
- 3 wins & 6 nominations
Irene Sunters
- May Morrison
- (as Irene Sunter)
Barbara Rafferty
- Woman with Baby
- (as Barbara Ann Brown)
Juliet Cadzow
- Villager on Summerisle
- (as Juliette Cadzow)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaSir Christopher Lee said that he considers this to be one of his greatest ever roles.
- GoofsMost of the "naked" girls dancing in the stone circle and jumping over the fire are wearing flesh-colored body stockings. (The film was shot in autumn and not in spring as it was set, and thus was very cold.)
- Quotes
Lord Summerisle: Do sit down, Sergeant. Shocks are so much better absorbed with the knees bent.
- Crazy credits[Short Version only] A message from the producers thanks "The Lord Summerisle and the people of his island" for co-operating in the making of the film. This is despite both the lord and the island being totally fictitious.
- Alternate versionsA dual DVD set in a burnt wooden box was released in 2001 by Anchor Bay. It has the standard 88 (or 87) minute Theatrical Version. It also has a 99 minute Extended Version. This also has the events in chronological order (unlike the 88 min version). Unlike the 95 minute version it does have footage prior to Sgt. Howie's arrival on Summerisle, including him as a Preacher.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Scream Greats, Vol. 2: Satanism and Witchcraft (1986)
- SoundtracksCorn Rigs
Written by Paul Giovanni
Performed by Paul Giovanni
[played over the latter half of the opening credits]
Featured review
I've been fascinated by 'The Wicker Man' ever since I first saw it on TV in the late 1970s. I was very young then and probably didn't completely understand it, but I knew immediately that it was a very special movie, unlike anything I'd ever seen before. Twenty five years, and literally thousands of movies later, I think even more highly of it, especially now that I'm able to see the cut available on the 30th Anniversary DVD, which is over fifteen minutes longer than the version I already own on video. And, yes, 'The Wicker Man' is still unlike any other movie I've ever seen. I think this is mainly down to the brilliant script by Anthony Shaffer, who also wrote 'Sleuth' and Hitchcock's 'Frenzy'. There hasn't been anything made remotely like it since. I think it's the greatest British horror movie ever made, but the description "horror" only gives you half the story. It's also a thriller, a mystery, a Christian morality tale, and in a weird way, a musical. Christopher Lee regards it as the best movie he's ever been involved with, and describes it as one of the three or four greatest movies ever made in Britain, and I agree with him. Lee is very good in the movie as the enigmatic Lord Summerisle, but Edward Woodward is the real star. Woodward is best know for his TV work, as either 'Callan' or 'The Equalizer', depending what generation you're from, but he's superb as the deeply religious Sgt. Howie. Apparently Peter Cushing was initially suggested for the role, as was Michael York, but I really can't imagine either of then being half as good as Woodward is. The supporting cast are all superb - Diane Cilento as the school teacher, famous mime Lindsay Kemp as the publican, and especially Britt Ekland as the publican's daughter Willow. Ekland's seduction dance scene is the second most famous scene in the movie. She claims her speaking voice was dubbed throughout , director Robin Hardy disputes this, though her singing voice certainly was, and she used a (ahem) butt double. I also get a kick out of Aubrey Morris' graveyard scene. Morris is a great Brit character actor and was also in 'A Clockwork Orange', Hammer's 'Blood From The Mummy's Tomb' and sci fi trash classic 'Lifeforce'. Another Hammer alumni Ingrid Pitt ('The Vampire Lovers', 'Countess Dracula', etc.) is also in the cast as a librarian, but sadly in underused. Still, I'm glad she was involved. Inexplicably some people seem to hate this movie. I can't for the life of me understand why. It's utterly brilliant, utterly unique, and I never tire of watching it. If you've never seen it before I envy you! It's a cliche, but believe me, you have never seen anything like it before!
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Anthony Shaffer's The Wicker Man
- Filming locations
- Culzean Castle, Maybole, South Ayrshire, Scotland, UK(Exteriors ofLord Summerisle's island mansion)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $810,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $148,882
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $5,493
- Sep 29, 2013
- Gross worldwide
- $528,514
- Runtime1 hour 28 minutes
- Sound mix
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content