All the fertility rites in the secluded Pacific Northwest island of Summersisle can't bring life to Neil Labute's barren remake of 1973's The Wicker Man.
The Wicker Man (2006)
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Reviews Counted:100
Fresh:15
Rotten:85
Average Rating:3.5/10
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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Reviews for The Wicker Man
[LaBute] turns Shaffer's compelling war of beliefs -- doctrinaire Calvinism vs. dogmatic animism, each as rewarding and demanding as the other -- into a wishy-washy clash between 'normal society' and womynist weirdos.
All in all, I would categorize The Wicker Man as an interesting failure.
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.
Critics will readily seize on the new film's quirks and deem it a turkey. But the film has many (moderate) strengths.
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.
Bracket the summer with this Warner Bros. flop and that opening disaster, Poseidon and you can't help but notice how long it's been since Warners did anything worth noting that wasn't a remake.
The Wicker Man is misconceived, miscast and, where suspense is concerned, thinner than a Katie Couric publicity photo.
Really could have used a few musical numbers and more cavorting naked women.
Writer-director Neil LaBute's remake of the 1973 British movie The Wicker Man should have had 'Don't make me!' stamped on the first page of the script.
I can see where LaBute is going...but the end result is unintentionally hilarious
The most risible backwoods thriller since M. Night Shyamalan traveled to The Village.
The gimmicky horror-flick conventions ultimately drag the film to a screeching halt.
In the remake, LaBute has Cage beating up women with karate kicks, and has placed an insulting coda on the film that screams of studio intervention of the worst kind. This is not progress.
LaBute does a decent job of translating it to 2006, but the idea behind it just isn't as cool as it once was.
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