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The Wicker Man

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The Wicker Man (2006)

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Reviews Counted:14

Fresh:1

Rotten:13

Average Rating:3.2/10

Consensus: Puzzlingly misguided, Neil LaBute's update The Wicker Man struggles against unintentional comedy and fails.

Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for disturbing images and violence, language and thematic issues

Runtime: 1 hr 46 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:Sep 1, 2006 Wide

Box Office: $23,607,080

Synopsis: Neil LaBute's THE WICKER MAN stars Nicholas Cage as Edward Malus, a policeman thrust into some dangerous detective work by a series of strange events that begin with a horrific car crash. This... Neil LaBute's THE WICKER MAN stars Nicholas Cage as Edward Malus, a policeman thrust into some dangerous detective work by a series of strange events that begin with a horrific car crash. This incident leaves the cop haunted, with images of the accident replaying in his heavily medicated mind. Edward's hiatus from work is interrupted when he receives a mysterious letter from his ex-fiancé, pleading with him to help find her missing daughter, Rowan. Against his better judgment, Edward travels to the remote, privately owned island of Summerisle, home to a close-knit, secretive community with a clear dislike for outsiders. Considering Edward an intruder, the Sisters of Summerisle offer little information regarding the missing girl. Edward is at a loss, finding even his ex-love Willow to be little help. With vacant eyes and a strange, listless way about her, Willow should be the first of many red flags to send Edward running. But in firm horror-movie tradition, the seasoned cop throws caution to the winds, staying in the place longer than seems smart. This 2006 remake veers away from the 1973 film in several key ways. For one, it replaces the original's eerily upbeat folk soundtrack with a tasteful Angelo Badalamenti score. With a mild PG-13 rating, the 2006 version is relatively tame compared to the original. While the 1973 film freely mixed pornographic elements with horror themes and musical numbers, the new film confines itself to horror, abandoning that strange mixture of genres that made Anthony Shaffer's film a cult classic. While LaBute's film adds a back-story and romantic interest, it requires equal suspension of disbelief. Despite their differences, both films end in the same disturbing way, leaving an indelible image that may haunt viewers long after the credits roll. [More]

Starring: Nicolas Cage, Ellen Burstyn, Molly Parker, Leelee Sobieski

Starring: Nicolas Cage, Ellen Burstyn, Molly Parker, Leelee Sobieski, Frances Conroy, Kate Beahan, Diane Delano, Michael Wiseman, Erika-Shaye Gair

Director: Neil LaBute

Director: Neil LaBute
Screenwriter: Neil LaBute
Producer: Nicolas Cage, Randall Emmett, Avi Lerner
Composer: Angelo Badalamenti
Producer: Nicolas Cage
Studio: Warner Bros.

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Release:

Jan 30, 2007

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Reviews for The Wicker Man

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1 - 14 (sorted by date)
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The '73 film is brilliantly constructed and ends with a punctuation mark that was shocking in its day. LaBute's movie attempts to shock, as well, and does: Given the names involved and the casting of Cage, it is shockingly bad.

Full Review Source: New York Daily News | comment Comment
09/23/06
Jack Mathews
Jack Mathews
New York Daily News
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Despite retaining significant chunks of Shaffer's dialogue to go along with the basic story structure, LaBute has transformed the eerie, disturbing psychological thriller into an unintentional comedy.

Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment Comment
09/07/06
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
ReelViews
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The Wicker Man is comically inept as a horror movie, unable to even manage an effective false scare, or sustain suspense for more than a beat or two.

comment 1 Comment
09/05/06
A.O. Scott
A.O. Scott
New York Times
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The whole thing is transparently a concoction, and so even though the movie holds you, its climax lacks that tingle of madness. All that's burning is some sticks.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment Comment
09/02/06
Owen Gleiberman
Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly
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LaBute's remake is an interesting idea that never transforms into a particularly satisfying movie.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
09/01/06
Mark Olsen
Mark Olsen
Los Angeles Times
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This wasn’t a horror film the first time around, and LaBute makes sorry feints at effective creepiness.

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
09/01/06
Michael Atkinson
Michael Atkinson
Village Voice
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The first Wicker Man was about a cult. The remake is more about a dolt.

Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
09/01/06
Bill Muller
Bill Muller
Arizona Republic
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Cage over the years has more than earned a reputation as an actor who is not afraid to embarrass himself, but in the cause of The Wicker Man, that seems less a commendation than a horrible misjudgment.

Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press | comment Comment
09/01/06
Terry Lawson
Terry Lawson
Detroit Free Press
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Nicolas Cage's finest hours are not spent frantically running through a forest in The Wicker Man, especially when he must do so dressed in a bear suit.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment 3 Comments
09/01/06
Ruthe Stein
Ruthe Stein
San Francisco Chronicle
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It's never as scary or suspenseful as it aspires to be, but it might just be the greatest bad movie of the year, with its clunky writing resulting in some surprisingly entertaining kooky moments.

Full Review Source: Associated Press | comment Comment
09/01/06
Christy Lemire
Christy Lemire
Associated Press
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Far more ambitious and stylish than most of today's horror crop, Neil LaBute's remake of the 1973 U.K. cult classic The Wicker Man unfortunately still falls far short of its mark.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Reporter | comment Comment
09/01/06
Frank Scheck
Frank Scheck
Hollywood Reporter
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Yet another needless 're-imagining' of a '70s cult fave that, truth to tell, is better remembered than actually viewed, Neil LaBute's folly follows the basic plot outline of the 1974 Brit horror opus of the same title.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
09/01/06
Joe Leydon
Joe Leydon
Variety
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It is perhaps a tad unreasonable to recommend that actor Nicolas Cage and writer/director Neil LaBute be burned at the stake for what they’ve done to The Wicker Man, that most British of cult movies.

Full Review Source: Toronto Star | comment Comment
09/01/06
Peter Howell
Peter Howell
Toronto Star
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The Wicker Man is misconceived, miscast and, where suspense is concerned, thinner than a Katie Couric publicity photo.

Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
09/01/06
Colin Covert
Colin Covert
Minneapolis Star Tribune
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