The Wicker Man Analysis
- Caitlin Willis
- May 11, 2021
- 5 min read
The Wicker Man (1973), directed by Robin Hardy, is a film adaptation of the 1967 novel Ritual by David Pinner and the first film people think of when the words folk horror are spoken. Essentially defining the genre, the plot follows the police sergeant Neil Howie as he travels to the isolated island Summerilse after receiving a letter about a missing girl. Howie is a devout Christian and therefore horrified to find the island's inhabitants practicing a form of Celtic Paganism.
Total Film regarded The Wicker Man as the sixth greatest British film ever made, and other critics have praised its place in horror history. It even earned its own cameo in the 2012 London Olympics opening ceremony.
Folk Horror
The folk horror sub-genre has deep connections to the counterculture, and at the time of this release, there was social unrest with the hippie movement and the fresh, liberal beliefs that spilt over from 60s youths. The Wicker Man opens a conversation about anxieties experienced by more conservative members of society at the time.
Film theorist John Fiske suggested that 'generic conventions embody ideological concerns of the time where they were popular' which can also be found in the films Blood on Satan's Claw (1971) and Witchfinder General (1968), both films released at a similar time. The witches in these films were sexually active and demonised for it; women embracing their sexuality presented as a sign of possession and demon worship. After the sexual liberation of the sixties, several communities found it hard to accept this push for equality and independence that women fought for, and its conflicts are referenced in these films.
Watching it back, the subtlety of the horror is a lot more reminiscent of modern-day 'post horror', the tension builds slowly, and the constant unknown factor in the narrative is suffocating. Even the creepy fool mask is off-putting.
The representation of paganism and witchcraft is a lot less subtle; the use of hares as a familiar, the maypole, and women dancing nude around a fire in hopes to be impregnated by the fire are visually paraded. These are all old religion pre- Christianity traditions that are used together to present this ‘backwards’ way of life. The horror in the film is based on the idea that paganism is ‘savage’ and blending this with complete isolation. Howie himself is devoutly religious so his views on the cult’s practices leave him pale and scandalised.
Gender and Sexuality
Whilst being somewhat revolutionary in the genre, The Wicker Man holds a divided image of gender. We see young women learning in-depth about the male reproductive system in a scene that is disturbing for Howie, and I imagine the audience at the time. There is also liberal use of the male gaze (Laura Mulvey) regarding Willow (Britt Ekland).
Britt Eklund was cast in the film as the temptation, a living embodiment of lust and deadly sins, she is like a femme fatale. Continually placed in a position to seduce the sergeant, Willow is a character whose sexuality is used as a plot point.
In a scene now iconic in cinema and the male gaze, she dances nude and bangs against the wall to lure Howie to her rooms in a ritual of provocative and primal movement. This 'sorcery' of her seduction and sexuality is constantly spoon-fed to the audience, even in her first introduction as 'The Landlord's Daughter'; a song that quotes 'when her name is mentioned, the parts of every gentleman do stand up at attention'. As the lyrics suggest, she has a certain reputation among the island, the song is meant to make Howie feel stiflingly uncomfortable and paint Willow in a sexually deviant light as she dances with the patrons of the pub.
The scene introduces how out of depth the sergeant is, stuck on an island of 'hippies' wearing kaftans and wandering nude whilst he stands in full uniform refusing to undo a single button. The messages in this film surrounding women are acutely misogynistic but Willow's sexuality also gives her a certain power in the isolated community. Surprisingly she isn't punished for this either, instead, she is seen standing to the right of the Islands leader in the final act.
In one scene we see Lord Summerilse take a young boy to her window as an 'offering', he calls her Aphrodite, the goddess of love, giving the impression that she has more influence over society than originally thought. The walk the boy takes through the pub to Willow's rooms like its own ritual, the locals sing and watch the ceiling as though praying. The atmosphere is quiet and reverent as though he was being blessed.
The visual communication and the contextual communication present two different interpretations of Willow but any progressive power she holds is hindered by the voyeuristic lens.
Paganism
Paganism is present through the film from the title to the closing scenes, presenting almost Amish isolation and highly juxtaposing any kind of Christian practices.
Lord Summerilse, explains to Howie how the locals live off of the crop that they export, but the goddess was being unkind in their harvest, so they needed to sacrifice someone to gain her favour. The entire film is exposed as a cat and mouse narrative as they manipulate Howie into the perfect candidate; this then leads to Howie being sacrificed by fire in a wicker man with several animals.
I think this scene is so effective because the idea of human sacrifices on a religious scale is something that hasn’t been publicly practiced for such a long time, and to have it shockingly put at the end of the film was huge in cinema.
In my research, I have found that human sacrifice was not hugely common in older Pagan rituals, so this film pushes this harmful representation of paganism having the people be carnal in their desire for harvest and the obvious sexual relations they have in public pushes this narrative.
Conclusion
By demonising the island they make Howie sympathetic, but don't manage to make him relatable. What I like about this film is that Howie isn’t a hero, and I think this is a conversation about how counterculture is scary to the conservative people, but it’s also not going to change for them. The overwhelming sense of hopelessness the final scene brings is quintessential to folk horror, The Wicker Man stamping the blueprint for the genre that can be found today in Ben Wheatley films and even Hollywood productions like Midsommar (2019).
References
The Wicker Man. 1973. [DVD] Directed by R. Hardy. United Kingdom: British Lion Films
Witchfinder General.1968. [Film] Directed by Michael Reeves. United Kingdom: Tigon British Film Production, American International Pictures
Midsommar. 2019. [Film] Directed by Ari Aster. United States: Square Peg, B-Reel Films.
Fiske, John. (1987) Television Culture. London: Methuen
Blood on Satans Claw. 1971. [Film] directed by Piers Haggard. United Kindgdom: Tigon Pictures, Cannon Films
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