It was upon a Lammas night when corn rigs are bonny. Beneath the moon's unclouded light I held awhile to Annie" - Corn Riggs, Paul Giovanni
They do things differently on the remote Scottish island of Summerisle. School children are taught to worship fertility symbols - especially the penis, the chemist has a clearly labelled jar of foreskins on his counter, a young girl with a sore throat has a frog inserted into her mouth by her own mother, the young adults have alfresco sex in public at night, navel strings are hung above the graves of the recently deceased and the locals in The Green Man Inn break into song about the landlord's daughter AKA "the baggage we all adore".
When Sergeant Howie (Edward Woodward) arrives on the island by seaplane he is at first confused and then, quite soon, horrified at their pagan, heathen ways. Howie is a devout Christian, a regular in church, a man who doesn't believe in sex before marriage, and a man so indoctrinated into his own belief systems that he can't even begin to understand anyone who would think differently to him.
He's aghast at the bawdy songs, shocked by the sexual abandon, utterly bewildered by the way the citizens of Summerisle behave, and, most of all, he's horrified by the fact that nobody seems to care, or in some cases - even acknowledge, that there may have been a terrible murder of a twelve year old child, Rowan Morrison (Geraldine Cowper) on the island.
It's what he's been sent there to investigate. After he's taken lodgings, and eaten a rather disgusting meal of tinned fruit and veg, in The Green Man Inn, he meets with a whole host of bizarre, yet friendly characters, Mrs Morrison (Irene Sunters) and her daughter Myrtle (Jennifer Martin) seem to be obsessed with hares, the landlord of the pub, Alder MacGregor (Lindsay Kemp) seems to encourage regulars to sing rude songs about, and even sleep with, his daughter Willow (Britt Ekland).
Though Willow can't tempt the devout Sergeant Howie who finds that every avenue of investigation is shut down immediately. For the most part people refuse to indulge him unless they first have the permission of Christopher Lee's Lord Summerisle. It's a role Lee once claimed as his very best performance and I can see why. He's great in his checked jacket and mustard polo neck and he's great when he explains to a bemused Howie how things on the island work. But Woodward is brilliant, too, in a role that is as buttoned up as Lee's is flamboyant.
When Howie's plane refuses to start, probably due to interference from nefarious forces, he's forced to spend another night on Summerisle. The day that follows that night will be May Day and May Day on Summerisle is a very special day indeed. As Howie will find out.
I'd not seen The Wicker Man for years, decades even, and though I remembered the end (anyone who's seen it will, but for the small number of you who haven't I won't spoil it) I'd forgotten lots of other stuff that happened. I wondered if I would be able to experience the thrill of seeing it for the first time when I knew how it would all pan out but not only did I experience that thrill I think I enjoyed it even more than I did when I'd previously watched it. I think I found it more chilling.
When The Wicker Man (directed by Robin Hardy) was first released in 1973, nobody seemed to know what to do with it. It was chopped and edited and put out as the lesser part of a double bill with the equally brilliant Don't Look Now (best double bill ever?). In the five decades that have followed it has gained a huge cult following and now regularly features in polls of the best films ever.
It's no less than it deserves. It's a folk horror masterpiece with a soundtrack that fits absolutely perfectly. Summerisle is a beautiful island but it's a place where terrible things have happened - and will happen again. Will Sergeant Howie be able to escape his own beliefs or will those beliefs lead him into trouble. There's a very big clue in the film's name.
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