A puritan Police Sergeant arrives in a Scottish island village in search of a missing girl, who the Pagan locals claim never existed.A puritan Police Sergeant arrives in a Scottish island village in search of a missing girl, who the Pagan locals claim never existed.A puritan Police Sergeant arrives in a Scottish island village in search of a missing girl, who the Pagan locals claim never existed.
- Director
- Writers
- Anthony Shaffer(screenplay)
- David Pinner(novel "Ritual")
- Stars
Top credits
- Director
- Writers
- Anthony Shaffer(screenplay)
- David Pinner(novel "Ritual")
- Stars
- Awards
- 2 wins & 6 nominations
Videos4
Irene Sunters
- May Morrisonas May Morrison
- (as Irene Sunter)
Barbara Rafferty
- Woman with Babyas Woman with Baby
- (as Barbara Ann Brown)
Juliet Cadzow
- Villager on Summerisleas Villager on Summerisle
- (as Juliette Cadzow)
- Director
- Writers
- Anthony Shaffer(screenplay)
- David Pinner(novel "Ritual") (uncredited)
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
- All cast & crew
Storyline
On Sunday, April 29, 1973, Sergeant Neil Howie with the West Highland Constabulary flies solo to Summerisle off the coast of Scotland. He is there to follow up on a letter addressed specifically to him from an anonymous source on Summerisle reporting that a twelve year old girl who lives on the island, Rowan Morrison, the daughter of May Morrison, has long been missing. The correspondence includes a photograph of Rowan. Upon his arrival on Summerisle, Howie finds that the locals are a seemingly simple minded lot who provide little information beyond the fact that they know of no Rowan Morrison and do not know the girl in the photo. Mrs. Morrison admits to having a daughter, seven year old Myrtle, but no Rowan. As Howie speaks to more and more people, he begins to believe that Rowan does or did live on the island, but that the locals are hiding their knowledge of her. He also begins to see that the locals all have pagan beliefs, their "religion" which centers on procreation as the source of life. That procreation does not necessarily need to be within marriage, and openly flaunts the act of sex, both in private and in public. These beliefs do not sit well against Howie's strict Christian morals, he who regularly attends church, prays, and accepts communion. Everything that happens on the island seems to be dictated by Lord Summerisle, whose ancestors bought the island generations ago. Howie begins to believe that Rowan was murdered, she a sacrifice by the islanders to their higher power to ensure a bountiful apple crop - the main crop of the island - which did not materialize last season. With May Day approaching, Howie not only tries to find out if Rowan was indeed murdered/sacrificed, which includes trying to locate her body, but if there will be another sacrifice on this important day within the cycle of life. —Huggo
- Taglines
- From the writer of 'Frenzy & Sleuth' Anthony Shaffer's incredible occult thriller
- Genres
- Certificate
- R
- Parents guide
Did you know
- TriviaThe "evil eye" rowing boat, which takes Sergeant Howie (Edward Woodward) to and from his plane, was not constructed for this movie. It belonged to a resident of Plockton. Upon seeing it, the producers decided it would suit the movie. The boat survived until 2004 when it was destroyed in a storm.
- GoofsDuring the scene in which the boys are dancing and singing round the Maypole,none of the children's lips are moving although we hear singing on the soundtrack.
- Quotes
Lord Summerisle: Do sit down, Sergeant. Shocks are so much better absorbed with the knees bent.
- Crazy credits[Short Version only] A message from the producers thanks "The Lord Summerisle and the people of his island" for co-operating in the making of the film. This is despite both the lord and the island being totally fictitious.
- Alternate versionsA dual DVD set in a burnt wooden box was released in 2001 by Anchor Bay. It has the standard 88 (or 87) minute Theatrical Version. It also has a 99 minute Extended Version. This also has the events in chronological order (unlike the 88 min version). Unlike the 95 minute version it does have footage prior to Sgt. Howie's arrival on Summerisle, including him as a Preacher.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Scream Greats, Vol. 2: Satanism and Witchcraft (1986)
- SoundtracksCorn Rigs
Written by Paul Giovanni
Performed by Paul Giovanni
[played over the latter half of the opening credits]
Top review
Chilling insight into ancient paganistic rituals, slightly chipped
The bizarre and chilling tale of a fool chosen to be king for a day.
The shocking denouement of this film has stayed with me for many years, far longer than scenes or images from more famous films. A classic of its kind, it deserves the re-release it will probably never get.
Superficially a mystery thriller, this intelligent and well researched story delves into the beliefs and rituals of Ancient Britain, its folk mythologies and music, and reveals some of the un-settling fears that lie at their root. Set on a remote Scottish Island and giving the appearance of being a Whisky Galore, Local Hero type community, there is yet something off-centre about the townspeople that Edward Woodward, as Sergeant Howie, has come to investigate. The presence of Christopher Lee as the eloquent, commanding Lord of the Isle, gives the film an insidiously creepy edge suggesting a Hammer Horror lurks around the next wee wall. He is perfect in the role.
The story un-folds like a cross between Chinatown and Rosemary's Baby, as the dogged Howie gets led all over town, up one blind alley and down another. Clues are dropped all the way about what is really going on, but we don't heed them. Until it's too late. Too late to walk away.
The standard video version runs for 85 minutes, cuts many important scenes and shows others out of sequence. A BBC version shown in 1998 ran around 95 minutes. The full version ran 102 minutes but I have never found it.
However, whilst uneven in parts and certainly flawed this is one of the most intelligent and interesting stories I have ever seen on film. See it yourself and you too will have many meetings with 'The Wicker Man', in your dreams, in the dark, where you cannot escape.
The shocking denouement of this film has stayed with me for many years, far longer than scenes or images from more famous films. A classic of its kind, it deserves the re-release it will probably never get.
Superficially a mystery thriller, this intelligent and well researched story delves into the beliefs and rituals of Ancient Britain, its folk mythologies and music, and reveals some of the un-settling fears that lie at their root. Set on a remote Scottish Island and giving the appearance of being a Whisky Galore, Local Hero type community, there is yet something off-centre about the townspeople that Edward Woodward, as Sergeant Howie, has come to investigate. The presence of Christopher Lee as the eloquent, commanding Lord of the Isle, gives the film an insidiously creepy edge suggesting a Hammer Horror lurks around the next wee wall. He is perfect in the role.
The story un-folds like a cross between Chinatown and Rosemary's Baby, as the dogged Howie gets led all over town, up one blind alley and down another. Clues are dropped all the way about what is really going on, but we don't heed them. Until it's too late. Too late to walk away.
The standard video version runs for 85 minutes, cuts many important scenes and shows others out of sequence. A BBC version shown in 1998 ran around 95 minutes. The full version ran 102 minutes but I have never found it.
However, whilst uneven in parts and certainly flawed this is one of the most intelligent and interesting stories I have ever seen on film. See it yourself and you too will have many meetings with 'The Wicker Man', in your dreams, in the dark, where you cannot escape.
helpful•19346
- xander-2
- Jan 5, 1999
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Also known as
- Hình Nhân Liễu Gai
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $810,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $60,891
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $5,493
- Sep 29, 2013
- Gross worldwide
- $162,007
- Runtime1 hour 28 minutes
- Sound mix
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content

Recently viewed
Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.