Such a community exists in “The Wicker Man”- they inhabit the small atoll of Summersisle off the coast of Washington. They do in fact drink mead- they also wear all homemade clothes, teach their children in a one-room schoolhouse, commemorate special events with old-fashioned photographs, and so on… What makes them unique in the realm of rustic societies is that they are a quasi-Wiccan/Celtic matriarchy. The only contact the island folk have with the outside world is through a local pilot who delivers supplies to them and likely distributes their sole export, Summersisle Honey (a product which can only be found online or, presumably, at Trader Joes).
Their isolation is broken one day, when Ed Malus (Nicolas Cage), a policeman from California, arrives at their colony. Ed is looking for his former fiancé Willow (Kate Beahan) who has written him claiming her daughter Rowan (Erika-Shaye Gair) has vanished. He is currently on leave from his department after witnessing a brutal car crash, so without hesitation he heads north to help Willow in her time of need.
The islanders initially regard Ed with an attitude that I can best describe as politely reserved mistrust. Ed shares their suspicious nature, but is somewhat more vocal about it. Soon he is questioning the locals, tramping through fields of beehives (though he is allergic), diving into underground catacombs, and eventually interrogating the island’s enigmatic queen (Ellen Burstyn). All the while, his mind begins playing tricks on him- the search for Rowan, the island mysteries, the car crash, and his past with Willow all start to mix together in his thoughts. Yet he is still compelled to solve the films riddles: What happened to Rowan? What is his relationship with Willow, and how is she connected to the group? What kind of bizarre customs do they practice on Summersisle? And who, or what, is the mysterious Wicker Man the villagers discuss in hushed tones when Ed’s not supposed to be listening?
In all, there are some intriguing aspects of “The Wicker Man”- for one thing, the beehive motif is a fascinating idea, which I haven’t seen before in this kind of movie. The concept is evident not only in the storyline (by correlating the island society with the bee colonies they maintain) but also in recurring imagery. Hexagonal shapes feature prominently in the village architecture, and several locations evoke different elements of a beehive (rough dark drone quarters for Cage’s room at the pub, while Burstyn’s home is the luminescent pale yellow of a queen bee’s chamber). And, while feminists and pagans may not be overly thrilled with having their ideologies implicitly linked to this group, the Summersisle colonists are a credible menace for the film.
It’s not a perfect thriller though, and like most movies that rely upon shocking moments some will come off as overly contrived or goofy. For example, when Nic Cage calls a room full of stone-faced school children liars for denying Rowan is their classmate, it’s an odd moment that elicits more nervous laughter than chills. Additionally, I couldn’t help but be amused at the idea that perhaps all the homemade knick-knacks for sale at places like the Cracker Barrel are really the products of deranged cultists.
However, overall “The Wicker Man” is a run of the mill movie; the mediocre bits are matched by the truly surprising moments in a way that averages out to a competent, if not overly remarkable, film. Of course, I do plan on double-timing it past the Amana Colonies on my next trip from Des Moines to Chicago, so perhaps it left a stronger impression than I’d anticipated…
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