For the Iron Maiden song, see The Wicker Man (song). The Wicker Man was the first single from Iron Maidens album Brave New World, released on 8th May 2000. ...

For the 2006 remake, see The Wicker Man (2006 film) In film, a remake is a newer version of a previously released film or a newer version of the source (play, novel, story, etc. ... The Wicker Man is a 2006 German/American remake of the 1973 cult British film of the same name. ...

The Wicker Man
Directed by	Robin Hardy
Produced by	Peter Snell
Written by	Anthony Shaffer
Starring	Edward Woodward Christopher Lee Diane Cilento Ingrid Pitt Britt Ekland
Distributed by	British Lion Films Ltd. Warner Bros. (USA)
Release date	June 1975 (USA)
Running time	102 min.(theatrical release) 117 min. (director's cut)
Language	English
IMDb profile

The Wicker Man is a cult 1973 British film containing thriller, horror and musical elements, directed by Robin Hardy, written by Anthony Shaffer. The film stars Edward Woodward, Christopher Lee, Diane Cilento, Ingrid Pitt and Britt Ekland. Paul Giovanni composed The Wicker Man soundtrack, a recording cited as a major influence on neofolk and psych folk artists. Image File history File links Wicker_Man_Poster. ... Robin Hardy is a British film director. ... Anthony Joshua Shaffer, (May 15, 1926 – November 6, 2001), was a English dramatist. ... Edward Woodward (b. ... Christopher Lee portrays Count Dooku in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones Christopher Frank Carandini Lee, CBE (born May 27, 1922 in Belgravia, London) is a legendary and prolific English actor known for his versatility, his professional longevity, and his distinctive basso delivery. ... Diane Cilento with her second husband, legendary Scottish actor Sean Connery in the 1960s. ... Ingrid Pitt (born November 21, 1937 in Poland), is an actress. ... Britt Ekland in a promotional shoot for The Man with the Golden Gun Britt Ekland (born October 6, 1942 as Britt-Marie Eklund) is a Stockholm-born Swedish actress, long resident in the UK. Britt Ekland became famous as a result of her whirlwind romance with British actor and comedian... Warner Bros. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Cult film is a colloquial term for a film that has accrued a small but devoted group of fans, having failed to achieve any fame outside that group. ... // Events The Marx Brothers Zeppo Marx divorces his second wife, Barbara Blakely. ... Film refers to the celluloid media on which movies are printed. ... The thriller is a broad genre of literature, film, and television that includes numerous, often-overlapping sub-genres. ... DVD cover showing horror characters as depicted by Universal Studios. ... The Golden Age of the Broadway musical is generally considered to have begun with Oklahoma! (1943) and to have ended with Hair (1968). ... Robin Hardy is a British film director. ... Anthony Joshua Shaffer, (May 15, 1926 – November 6, 2001), was a English dramatist. ... Edward Woodward (b. ... Christopher Lee portrays Count Dooku in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones Christopher Frank Carandini Lee, CBE (born May 27, 1922 in Belgravia, London) is a legendary and prolific English actor known for his versatility, his professional longevity, and his distinctive basso delivery. ... Diane Cilento with her second husband, legendary Scottish actor Sean Connery in the 1960s. ... Ingrid Pitt (born November 21, 1937 in Poland), is an actress. ... Britt Ekland in a promotional shoot for The Man with the Golden Gun Britt Ekland (born October 6, 1942 as Britt-Marie Eklund) is a Stockholm-born Swedish actress, long resident in the UK. Britt Ekland became famous as a result of her whirlwind romance with British actor and comedian... Paul Giovanni (Born: 1933 Atlanta. ... For the Iron Maiden song, see The Wicker Man (song). ... Neofolk is a form of folk music that emerged from European ideals and post-industrial music circles. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

In 2004 the magazine Total Film named The Wicker Man the sixth greatest British film of all time. A collection of magazines A magazine is a periodical publication containing a variety of articles, generally financed by advertising and/or purchase by readers. ... Total Film, published by Future Publishing, is the United Kingdoms second best-selling film magazine, after the longer-established Empire from Emap. ...

Brightlight Pictures is producing a remake of the film set in Maine; the reprise stars Nicolas Cage and Ellen Burstyn. Robin Hardy has expressed concern over the remake [1]. Brightlight Pictures Inc. ... In film, a remake is a newer version of a previously released film or a newer version of the source (play, novel, story, etc. ... Official language(s) None Capital Augusta Largest city Portland Area  - Total   - Width   - Length    - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 39th 33,414 sq mi  86,542 km² 190 miles  305 km 320 miles  515 km 13. ... The Weather Man movie poster Nicolas Cage (born January 7, 1964) is an Academy Award-winning American actor. ... Ellen Burstyn (born December 7, 1932 as Edna Rae Gillooly in Detroit, Michigan) is an Academy Award-winning American actress. ...

Plot

Sergeant Neil Howie (Woodward), of the West Highlands Constabulary, is sent an anonymous letter recommending that he investigate the disappearance of a young girl, Rowan Morrison, on the remote Hebridean island of Summerisle. He flies out to the island and during his investigations discovers that the entire population follow a neo-pagan religion under the island's owner Lord Summerisle (Lee), worshipping the sun and engaging in other rituals. The Scottish Highlands are the mountainous regions of Scotland north and west of the Highland Boundary Fault. ... The Hebrides The Hebrides comprise a widespread and diverse archipelago off the west coast of Scotland, and in geological terms are composed of the oldest rocks in the British Isles. ... Neopaganism or Neo-Paganism [1] is any of a heterogeneous group of new religious movements, particularly those influenced by ancient, primarily pre-Christian and sometimes pre-Judaic religions. ...

Howie, an extremely devout and conservative Christian, is increasingly shocked by the islanders' behaviour; he is attracted and repulsed by the alluring and sexual Willow (Ekland), the landlord's daughter. He has no assistance in his search from the islanders, who initially deny Morrison exists and then say that she recently died. Howie persists and uncovers evidence suggesting the girl was a victim, or perhaps is soon to be a victim, of human sacrifice. Delving deeper into the island's culture, he disguises himself as Punch, a principal character of the May Day festival, to uncover the details of the ceremony. The islanders are not fooled and at the end of the festival it is revealed that the girl is alive and unhurt; the letter was part of a ploy to bring Howie to the island for him to be the sacrifice, which they believe will restore the fertility of their fields. Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recounted in the Gospels. ... Human sacrifice was practiced in many ancient cultures. ... A stained glass illustration of Punch by Professor Ignorant Punch and Judy is a popular glove-puppet show for children (although the earliest shows used marionettes), featuring Punch and his wife Judy. ... May Day refers to any of several holidays celebrated on May 1 or in the beginning of May. ...

As Howie is seized by the islanders, Lord Summerisle drolly notes that the sacrifice will be especially efficacious since the engaged Howie is a virgin; like Punch, is simultaneously wise and a fool, comes as a King (a representative of Her Majesty's government), and comes to the place of sacrifice of his own free will. Howie admonishes Lord Summerisle that if his sacrifice does not work, the next year, the islanders will have no choice but to sacrifice their king - Lord Summerisle. Summerisle appears certain that sacrificing Howie will work. Howie is forced into the belly of a large hollow wicker statue of a man, which is set on fire. In the final shot of the film, the islanders surround the burning wicker man and sing the Middle English folk-song "Sumer Is Icumen In" while the terrified Howie shouts out Psalm 23 and implores divine vengeance on the island and its inhabitants. Betrothal is a formal state of engagement to be married. ... In Roman times, Vestal Virgins were strictly celibate or they were punished by death. ... A wickerwork scratching post A wicker balloon basket holding 16 passengers. ... Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman invasion in 1066 and the mid-to-late 15th century, when the Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the... Sumer Is Icumen In is a traditional English round, and possibly the oldest such example of counterpoint in existence. ... Wikisource has original text related to this article: Psalm 23 Psalm 23 (Psalm 22 in the Septuagint numbering), sometimes known as the Shepherd Psalm because of its opening line, The Lord is my shepherd, is the best-known psalm, and perhaps the best-known chapter in the Bible. ...

Problematic release

The film was produced at a time of crisis in the British film industry. The studio in charge of production, British Lion Films, was in financial trouble and was bought out by millionaire businessman John Bentley. In order to convince the unions that he wasn't about to asset-strip the company, Bentley needed to get a film into production quickly. This meant that The Wicker Man, a film set during early summer, was actually filmed in October; in order to look convincing, artificial leaves and blossoms had to be glued to trees in many scenes. Christopher Lee was extremely keen to get the film made; he and others worked on the production without pay. By the time of the film's completion the studio had been bought out by Michael Deeley. At a private screening, he described the film as one of the worst 10 films he'd ever seen. Cuts were made and a copy of the film was sent to American film producer Roger Corman in Hollywood to make a judgement of how to market the film in the USA. In Britain, the film was cut again and eventually released as part of a double bill (with Don't Look Now). Despite Lee's claims that the cuts had butchered the film's continuity, the film met with critical acclaim and won first prize in the 1974 Festival of Fantastic Films in Paris. Sometime thereafter, the original negatives and the only print of the first cut of the film were 'lost'. John Bentley (born June 1860 in Turton was a Englishman who was the fourth full-time Secretary of Manchester United and Manager of the club. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... Asset stripping is the practice of buying a company in order to sell its assets individually at a profit. ... Michael Deeley (born August 6, 1932) is a film producer who has helped create notable films such as The Italian Job, Blade Runner and The Deer Hunter. ... A film producer creates the conditions for making movies. ... Roger William Corman (born April 5, 1926) is an American producer and director of low-budget films. ... ... Dont Look Now is a British film about a couple whose daughter tragically drowns while playing at their English home. ... In fiction, continuity is consistency of the characteristics of persons, plot, objects, places and events seen by the reader or viewer. ... The Eiffel Tower, the international symbol of the city, as viewed from the Trocadéro This article is about the capital and largest city in France. ...

The two-disc edition of the DVD includes two versions. The film as it was originally released is an 87-minute cut. A partially restored version (which contains scenes recovered from a videotape of the version sent to Roger Corman) runs 99 minutes. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Soundtrack

The Wicker Man
Soundtrack by Paul Giovanni & Magnet
Released	1998, 2002
Recorded	1973
Genre	Folk
Length	42:43 (1998 release),39:41 (2002 release)
Label	Trunk Records (1998 release), Silva Screen (2002 release)
Professional reviews
BBC Image File history File links Wickermansoundtrack. ... Soundtrack refers to the recorded sound accompanying a visual medium such as a motion picture, television show, or video game. ... Paul Giovanni (Born: 1933 Atlanta. ... Magnet were a band formed for the purpose of recording the soundtrack to the 1973 film The Wicker Man. ... A music genre is a category (or genre) of pieces of music that share a certain style or basic musical language (van der Merwe 1989, p. ... Folk Music, in the original sense of the term, is music by and of the common people. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Trunk Records is an independent record label which specialises mainly in film scores, library music, sexploitation and kitsch releases. ...

Composed, arranged and recorded by Paul Giovanni and Magnet, the soundtrack contains various folk songs performed by characters in the film (including some by members of the cast). The songs were arranged in such a way as to hint at a pre-Christian pagan European culture and vary between traditional songs, original Giovanni compositions and even nursery rhyme in "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep". This mix of songs contributes greatly to the film's atmosphere, contrasting rabble-rousing songs that depict the island's community like "The Landlord's Daughter" and the child-sung "Maypole" with the sinister "Fire Leap" and the erotic "Willow's Song" before culminating in the islanders' chilling rendition of the profane Middle English "Sumer Is Icumen In", considered by many to be one of cinema's most frightening scenes. Paul Giovanni (Born: 1933 Atlanta. ... Magnet were a band formed for the purpose of recording the soundtrack to the 1973 film The Wicker Man. ... Baa Baa Black Sheep is a nursery rhyme, set to a variant of the Twinkle Twinkle Little Star tune. ... Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman invasion in 1066 and the mid-to-late 15th century, when the Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the... Sumer Is Icumen In is a traditional English round, and possibly the oldest such example of counterpoint in existence. ...

The instrumental parts of the score also serve to underline the dark and mysterious undertones of the island's inhabitants and their beliefs whilst still in keeping with the traditional nature of the rest of the music. Most are based on traditional Scottish, and often Irish, music such as the strathspey "Robertson's Rant" jig and "Drowsy Maggie" reel. "Chop Chop" is based on the nursery rhyme "Oranges and Lemons". A strathspey is a dance tune in 4/4, usually written in 1/8th notes. ... Oranges and Lemons is an English nursery rhyme which refers to the bells of several churches, all within or close to the City of London. ...

The soundtrack is a recording cited by many as a major influence on neofolk, psych folk and even the recent New Weird America movements. Many of the songs have been covered by contemporary artists. Neofolk is a form of folk music that emerged from European ideals and post-industrial music circles. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... New Weird America describes a musical movement in the 2000s of psychedelic folk music. ...

The soundtrack was unavailable until a 1998 release on Trunk Records of a mono album dubbed from the shorter original cut of the film (hence missing the song "Gently Johnny"). This was due to disappearance of master tapes (long thought buried under the British M3 motorway) and it was not until 2002 that Silva Screen Records released a stereo version taken from the original master tapes that included the songs missing from the first release. Trunk Records is an independent record label which specialises mainly in film scores, library music, sexploitation and kitsch releases. ... In the Republic of Ireland, the M3 motorway is a planned upgrade to part of the N3 road from Dublin to Cavan and the Northwest. ...

2002 Track listing:

1. "Corn Rigs"
2. "The Landlords Daughter"
3. "Gently Johnny"
4. "Maypole"
5. "Fire Leap"
6. "The Tinker Of Rye"
7. "Willows Song"
8. "Procession"
9. "Chop Chop"
10. "Lullaby"
11. "Festival" / "Mirie It Is" / "Sumer Is A-Cumen In"
12. "Opening Music" / "Loving Couples" / "The Ruined Church"
13. "The Masks" / "The Hobby Horse"
14. "Searching For Rowan"
15. "Appointment With The Wicker Man"
16. "Sunset"

• An instrumental version of "Willow's Song" is also available from the record label's website [2].

1998 Track listing:

1. "The Wicker Man (Main Title)"
2. "Corn Riggs"
3. "Landlords Daughter"
4. "Festival Photos"
5. "Loving Couples"
6. "Willow's Song"
7. "Maypole Song"
8. "Beetle"
9. "Ruined Church Sequence"
10. "Corn Riggs" & "Fireleap"
11. "Fireleap (Reprise)"
12. "Graveyard Sequence" - "Tinker Of Rye"
13. "Tinker Of Rye (Part 2)"
14. "Festival"
15. "Masks"
16. "Hobby Horse & Tarring"
17. "Search 1 - Baa, Baa, Black Sheep"
18. "Search 2"
19. "Hand Of Glory"
20. "Procession"
21. "Chop Chop"
22. "Horn At Cave - Cave Chase"
23. "The Anointing"
24. "Hum"
25. "Approach"
26. "Summer Is A Coming In"
27. "The Wicker Man (End Title)"

Baa Baa Black Sheep is a nursery rhyme, set to a variant of the Twinkle Twinkle Little Star tune. ...

Trivia

• The DVD commentary track states that studio executives suggested a more "upbeat" ending to the film, in which a sudden rain puts the flames of the wicker man out and spares Howie's life.
• Locations used in the film include areas around Newton Stewart, Culzean Castle and Plockton.
• Summerisle is fictitious, but there is a real group of Scottish islands called the Summer Isles.
• Scottish band Summerisle is named after the island featured in the film.
• The Coral paid homage to the film in the video of their Top 40 hit "Goodbye" in 2002.
• Cilento subsequently married Shaffer.
• Sneaker Pimps did a version of Willow's song they titled "How do" on their debut release, Becoming X. Doves, Anna Oxygen and Faith and the Muse have also covered the song.
• Iron Maiden have recorded a song entitled "The Wicker Man" as have Pulp, the Pulp version containing a sample from the film. Coincidentally, Bruce Dickinson, lead singer of Iron Maiden, recorded his own original song called "Wicker Man" in 1997, four years before his reunion with the band and the recording of the Iron Maiden song of the same name.
• English band Candidate made a 2002 album, Nuada, inspired by The Wicker Man.

Newton Stewart is a burgh in Dumfries and Galloway (the traditional county of Wigtownshire), Scotland, on the River Cree. ... Culzean Castle (pronounced cull-ANE) is a castle near Maybole on the Ayrshire coast of Scotland. ... Harbour Street, the main street in Plockton Plockton ( Am Ploc/Ploc Loch Aillse in Gaelic ) is a village in the Highlands of Scotland, with a population of 378 [1]. It is a picturesque settlement on the shores of Loch Carron. ... This article is about the Summer Isles in Scotland. ... Summerisle is a Scottish Indie pop band. ... The Coral are a British band formed in 1996 in Hoylake in the Wirral near Liverpool. ... Top 40 is a radio format based on frequent repetition of songs from a constantly-updated list of the forty best-selling singles. ... Sneaker Pimps is a British Electropop band formed in Reading, England in 1995. ... Becoming X is the debut album from Sneaker Pimps released in 1996. ... Doves are a rock band from Manchester, United Kingdom. ... Anna Oxygen is an American musician who has recorded for the K Records label. ... Faith and the Muse is an underground band composed of two musicans, Monica Richards and William Faith. ... Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from East London. ... Pulp are a British Britpop band, formed in Sheffield, England, in 1978 by then 15-year-old school-boy Jarvis Cocker (vocals, guitar). ... Bruce Dickinson For the record producer Bruce Dickinson featured in Saturday Night Lives skit, see More Cowbell. ...

The Wicker Man in the media

• "The Wicker Man" is shown in the background on TV in Danny Boyle's Shallow Grave.

• A full-size, burning Wicker Man appears in the background of the "End of the World" Party in the film version of "The Rules of Attraction".

• The image of the burning wicker man is a recurring motif in the final stages of the comic series The Invisibles. A screen showing the final scene in the film is used in the psychological de-programming of one of the characters (D.I. Jack Flint)

• In Eli Roth's Hostel, a cover of "Willow's Song" from The Wicker Man plays during a sex scene. The "Willow's Song" scenes in The Wicker Man and Hostel share a theme of seduction and entrapment in a foreign land.

Danny Boyle (right) with Alex Garland Danny Boyle (born October 20, 1956) is a film director and film producer born in Manchester, England to Irish Catholic emigrant parents. ... Movie Poster Shallow Grave is a 1994 British thriller film, directed by Danny Boyle and written by John Hodge. ... The Rules of Attraction is a novel by Bret Easton Ellis published in 1987. ... In art, a motif is a repeated idea, pattern, image, or theme. ... Cover to The Invisibles (v2) #1. ... Hostel (2006) is director Eli Roths second feature film. ...

Remake

A remake, starring Nicolas Cage and Ellen Burstyn and directed by Neil LaBute is set for release on 1 September 2006. The Wicker Man is a 2006 German/American remake of the 1973 cult British film of the same name. ... The Weather Man movie poster Nicolas Cage (born January 7, 1964) is an Academy Award-winning American actor. ... Ellen Burstyn (born December 7, 1932 as Edna Rae Gillooly in Detroit, Michigan) is an Academy Award-winning American actress. ... September 1 is the 244th day of the year (245th in leap years). ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Reference

Brown, Allan (2000). Inside The Wicker Man: The Morbid Ingenuities. London: Macmillan. ISBN 0-283-06355-6.

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

The Wicker Man (1973 film)

• The Wicker Man at the Internet Movie Database
• The Wicker Man: The return of the Pagan World - overview of the film's usage of pagan symbolism
• Review by Jonathan Dunder
• Games of truth, anthropology, and the death of ‘man’ - A philosophical interpretation of the film by Robert Farrow, 2005
• The various versions of The Wicker Man — A discussion on the history of making The Wicker Man with links to pages with a blow-by-blow account of the differences in each version; also includes a description of scenes that were not included in either short or long version, or were otherwise lost.

Image File history File links Wikiquote-logo-en. ... Wikiquote logo Wikiquote is a sister project of Wikipedia, using the same MediaWiki software. ... The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about actors, films, television shows, television stars, video games and production crew personnel. ...

Soundtrack information

• Silva Screen release information
• Trunk Records release information
• Music site about the significance of the film and its music
• Associate Musical Director Gary Carpenter's recollections of the film

Related films

• The Wicker Man Enigma directed by David Gregory, 2001.
• Burnt Offering: The Cult of the Wicker Man directed by Andrew Abbott and Russell Leven, 2001. Cast members gather to reminisce about their experience making The Wicker Man.

This is a list of film-related events in 2001. ... This is a list of film-related events in 2001. ...

Other sites

• The Wickerman Festival - Scotland's Alternative Music Event — the July celebration of cult and off the wall music that climaxes in the burning of a giant willow and straw effigy.