87
Metascore
16 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100EmpireAdam SmithEmpireAdam SmithThe Wicker Man is, more than anything else, a film about what people can do in the name of religion or, more generally, belief. Its power comes not from appeals to the supernatural but from a deep understanding of our own undeniable nature. Horror doesn't get much closer to home than that.
- 100The Wicker Man is influential not just on subsequent horror cinema, but on the thriller genre in general in the way it sets an artfully composed series of traps for its unwitting protagonist, expertly wrong-footing both him and the audience until the devastating ending.
- 100Time OutDavid FearTime OutDavid FearIt remains a how-to model for making something that fancies itself a slow-burn thriller—until it isn’t slow-burning whatsoever.
- 100The GuardianPeter BradshawThe GuardianPeter BradshawThere is genuine fear in its nightmarish tableaux: the breast-feeding woman holding an egg in the ruined churchyard is like a detail from Hieronymus Bosch. And that final sequence, with the eponymous Wicker Man, is inspired.
- 100A truly cerebral fear flick, edgy, brooding, packing the power to freeze your bones and claim your sleepless thoughts at two in the morning.
- 88ReelViewsJames BerardinelliReelViewsJames BerardinelliA film that defies categorization, The Wicker Man can be considered to be a horror film, a psychological thriller, a musical, or a melodrama. In reality, since it includes elements of each of those types, it literally has something for just about everyone.
- 80Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranLos Angeles TimesKenneth TuranAn odd, one-of-a-kind little film that features an involving plot by Anthony Shaffer and a performance by Christopher Lee that the iconic actor declares is his best. It also features paganism. Lots and lots of paganism.
- 75TV Guide MagazineTV Guide MagazineThe Wicker Man is intelligent entertainment that takes its subject seriously without resorting to gratuitous effects to make a point. It remains a fine example of occult horror that remains with the viewer well past its conclusion.
- 75Chicago ReaderDave KehrChicago ReaderDave KehrRobin Hardy's 1973 cult horror film passed through several distributors, several versions, and several bankruptcies, picking up a powerful reputation along the way.