Branching Out with New Morals in The Wicker Tree: A Movie Review

Writer/Director: Robin Hardy.

Cast: Brittania Nicol, Henry Garrett, Christopher Lee and Graham McTavish.

Sometimes, the classics should be left alone and allowed to age gracefully. In the case of The Wicker Tree, the die-hards of the original The Wicker Man, expecting a modern take, will be disappointed. Ignoring the Nicolas Cage travesty, this re-imaging of the folk horror tale can be looked at in a different perspective as an analogy of how some missionaries from yesteryears may have been treated when they went out to preach the word of God to the new world.

That is, if converting cultures to a new belief system is considered a crime, the angels in Heaven should be weeping. Free Will is about personal choice, and the horror should come in dealing what results from it. For Adam and Eve, they lost paradise and a direct line to God when they ate from the apple.

In the case of a southern belle from Texas, Beth (Brittania Nicol), and her beau, Steve (Henry Garrett), they are Evangelist Christians completely out of their element. Their mission is to travel to heathen areas to go preach their spiritual beliefs, and they have to fend for themselves.

Like the travellers of old, they are in territory that is not theirs to own. They head to an ancient land, Scotland, long claimed by the Celts. From there, this group of ethnically diverse immigrants travelled elsewhere to settle in amongst the fairy folk and local gods that exist within the land. The traditions they have built have become uniquely their own.

To have Beth and Steve intrude upon the spirit of the land is like a slap to the face of Gaia, the spirit of the Earth. After a performance in Glasgow, they are invited to preach in the small town of Tressock by Sir Lochlan Morrison (Graham McTavish). But this individual has other plans for them as May Day approaches.

Most of this film is a slow boil to a confrontation with the old ways and the gods of yore. Since most viewers are already familiar with The Wicker Man, the inevitability of what will happen is no surprise. New viewers will find more to like since they are not coming in to watch this film with expectations.

In this movie, the challenges of what faith is about are explored. Will Beth and Steve find a lesson in what blind religion means? Or will they get to confront their own demons? Instead, they are stepping backwards through time to an era when Christ did not exist. His influence was not that far reaching until centuries later. The couple comes through as naive, and what they receive from the villagers is deserved.

Their reward for preaching soon becomes a horrific lesson in humility since their God will not save them. If that was the intent by writer/director Robin Hardy, then he has crafted a brilliant dark fable. Sadly, the villagers are played up for more humour than serious. That ruins the impact of this film. If Beth and Steve are not careful, their goose is pretty much cooked.

Overall: 6 out of 10.

The film's homepage:

The Wicker Tree's Official Website

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