Frightfest: The Wicker Tree (2010)

For many, it has been a movie that has been nearly 40 years in the making, some see it as a re-imagining, and some see it as a sequel, I think I need to steal some terminology from Ridley Scott, The Wicker Tree has the same DNA as The Wicker Man, but that, is quite literally as far as it goes. What The Wicker Tree most definitely is, is a tale written and directed the creator of the original man, so really who could be better to handle such a project?

Two born again Christians, head from their American home to the Scottish borders in order to reacquaint, or if you prefer re-introduce its heathen people with Jesus and the Lord. The girl, Beth Boothby (Britannia Nicol) is a religious singer, the boy, Steve (Henry Garrett) her fiancé and fellow believer in the word of the law. Invited to a small community by Sir Lachlan Morrison (Graham McTavish) and his wife Delia (Jacqueline Leonard), who it seems have an agenda other than spreading the word of the lord. Beth and Steve agree to participate in the locals yearly ritual, in order to help them to get a foothold in the community, and hopefully to spread the word of God, but the pair are completely unaware of exactly what the true purpose of the roles of the May Queen and The Laddie are, and the true purpose of the celebration.

The Wicker Tree is clearly a product from the same mind of the Wicker Man, sadly what it does not have is the charm, this being said, The Wicker Man was not appreciated at the time, and took nearly 15 years for people to begin to appreciate its power, so maybe the same may happen again. For those looking for more instant satisfaction however, you may be in store for a rude awakening. 

The soul of The Wicker Man is clearly what is missing from the film, in the original Sgt Howie is very slowly lured into a very alien world to the one he comes from, the couple in this movie even up to the day’s events really seem in some ways oblivious to quite how disturbing things are. They simply see the scenario in the same way as you would if you were visiting an alien country, whether this is intentional or not, I’m not really sure. In the original each and every new step Howie takes, you are thinking, “that’s a bit weird” here however there is not enough emphasis on what is different, what is quite so alien.

The biggest issue however is that there is simply no moving forward, this is a product that has not moved on in any way, it may be a very different story, but it follows an identical flow, in fact, in order for it to have any real power you really do not want to have seen the original movie.

The cast and characters they play are an interesting bunch, Jacqueline Leonard is a most interesting casting, the woman UK audiences grew up with enjoying her kind, loving roles in soap operas such as Eastenders and Doctors, this really rubs against how you see her in the past; and while she is simply the wife of the “Laird”, in some ways she is the most evil character you encounter. Honeysuckle Weeks who stars as the town nymph, Lolly (a role previously taken by Britt Ekland) is an interesting and somewhat perplexing character, and actress. Almost compulsary to the project, is a brief addition of Christopler Lee who appears in a sequence in which the Laird remembers his childhood. Sadly the two that you are meant to have kinship with, Beth and Steve do not quite meet the expected marking post. You never once relate to them as you do Howie in the original, even if his views never quite match your own.

While you cannot deny a certain charm, The Wicker Tree will ultimately disappoint you if you have seen the original movie, this is a different but similar movie, for a completely different time. The roles of the characters have been handed down to new characters played by new actors, but none of them have the strength of the original. If you walk into this completely in the dark, or if the movie had no ties to The Wicker Man then you might find it a much different viewing experience. The film’s most disappointing aspect however is its ending, which delivers absolutely nothing new to the audience, other than the fact that the price to be paid must be shared by two rather than one. While The Wicker Tree does feature the similar environments, and musical input, it’s a weaker variation, no doubt hindered by the fact that the project has taken so long to complete.

Appearing as part of the 2011 Frightfest, Robin Hardy and some of the cast appeared on stage, much to the delight of the audience. While all those who loved the original, were undoubtedly disappointed with the movie, none would denied the wonderful charm of the aging director, who clearly has an eye of the ladies, and in some ways the men. Sadly there was little time to quiz this very talented director, and to get insight into his mind, although he was asked about why he worked so little in the film industry, to which Hardy rather amusingly replied “I have other things to do!’ He did however reveal that he is not done with this story yet, and a third movie The Wraith Of The Gods may soon be on the way.