The Wicker Man (1973)
Directed by Robin Hardy
Police sergeant Neil Howie is called to an island village in search of a missing girl whom the locals claim never existed. The investigation is further complicated as Howie’s religious views clash with those of the island’s residents.
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3 films that influenced The Wicker Man
What critics say influenced The Wicker Man
This legendary cult film has received an almost absurd amount of accolades and kudos from fans of the horror genre, with noted genre magazine Cinefantastique going so far as to call it the "Citizen Kane of horror movies."
No surprise there ? the screenplay was crafted by Anthony Shaffer, whose Sleuth had already proven him more than able to build a tight whodunit on clever twists and the cunning of malevolent gamesmanship.
THE WICKER MAN was written by Anthony Shaffer, best known for his play "Sleuth."
Screenwriter Anthony Shaffer had previously penned critically praised adaptations of Sleuth and Frenzy (for Alfred Hitchcock).
I am referring, of course, to the 1973 The Wicker Man directed by Robin Hardy and written by Anthony Shaffer at the absolute peak of his influence - it was three years after Sleuth was staged, and one year after it was filmed in the same year as Shaffer's script for Alfred Hitchcock's Frenzy - and not at all the Neil LaBute/Nicolas Cage thing from 2006 , as has come to be regarded in later years as one of the truly misbegotten projects of the 2000s, and a film that has never been described by anyone as "all-time perfect" in any context at all.
With its literate script by Sleuth playwright Anthony Shaffer and memorable Scottish folk score, Hardy's fascinating mixture of horror, eroticism and religion is thoughtful, challenging and highly provocative entertainment.
The Wicker Man was written by Anthony Shaffer (Sleuth), who penned the screenplay because he wanted to script a horror movie that was devoid of the blood and gore that characterized films of the genre.
Screenwriter Anthony Shaffer had previously penned critically praised adaptations of Sleuth and Frenzy (for Alfred Hitchcock).
I am referring, of course, to the 1973 The Wicker Man directed by Robin Hardy and written by Anthony Shaffer at the absolute peak of his influence - it was three years after Sleuth was staged, and one year after it was filmed in the same year as Shaffer's script for Alfred Hitchcock's Frenzy - and not at all the Neil LaBute/Nicolas Cage thing from 2006 , as has come to be regarded in later years as one of the truly misbegotten projects of the 2000s, and a film that has never been described by anyone as "all-time perfect" in any context at all.
Written by Anthony Shaffer, who also adapted Hitchcocks "Frenzy" and penned both the play "Sleuth" and its later film version, the film masterfully builds a sense of discomfort and dread in the viewer, even though nothing particularly scary happens through the bulk of it.