10 Best The Wicker Man Moments
5. The Beetle in the Desk
After witnessing the Maypole lesson, Howie is convinced that the island’s odd and arguably immoral behaviour originates with Miss Rose’s classroom, accusing her of corrupting the children’s innocence. This is briefly set aside when he begins to question the class of Rowan Morrison’s whereabouts, but his fury isn’t long abated as no answers are forthcoming. He marches to the the only empty desk and flings the lid open. Empty apart from one curious sight… a beetle tied to a nail.
“The little old beetle goes ’round and ’round. Always the same way, y’see, until it ends up right up tight to the nail. Poor old thing.”
Howie is right to an extent. With such wanton animal cruelty on display with no reprimand or disgust from peers and teachers, it is clear there is some warped corruption happening within the school’s walls. Regardless of faith, the islanders’ casual relationship with death is proven. Howie’s total fear and disgust of the island is fully realised at this point – when he finds Rowan’s name in the school register, he makes sure to call the young girls despicable liars.
4. God Is Dead
Once Howie reluctantly turns to get permission from Lord Summerisle to exhume what he expects to be Rowan Morrison’s body, much of the mystery of the island is revealed. Aghast at the religious practices Howie has seen on the island thus far (including young women jumping naked through a fire), Howie questions the Lord over the lack of Christian influence on Summerisle despite Scotland’s long Christian history. What about the true God? He receives this answer:
“He’s Dead. Can’t complain. Had his chance and, in modern parlance, blew it.”
Fifty years on, society is largely secular and multi-cultural, we cannot fully share in Howie’s shock and outrage. However, we can see the real horror of the film which is Lord Summerisle’s cynicism. He explains the history of the island in which his Victorian grandfather had developed new strains of fruit and decided to experiment to see if they could grow in the island’s harsh environment, then recruited the locals by encouraging them to embrace older pagan rites. With the new bountiful harvest, Christianity was soon forgotten as the community revelled in their new found wealth and sexual liberation.
This combination of science and mysticism is genuinely curious, but Lord Summerisle’s motivations seem to hide a darkness. Does he have a genuine faith in the old gods, or does his encouragement in the island’s pagan practices help maintain the status quo where he sits atop his orchard empire? The use of the phrase “… had his chance” is what arouses suspicion of ulterior motives: a rejection of Christ who could not provide means to creating your very own kingdom which Lord Summerisle enjoys, and will clearly do anything to ensure.
Recommended for you: Where to Start with Christopher Lee
3. Howie’s Temptation
One of The Wicker Man‘s great achievements is its reflection upon Christianity through the character of Sargent Howie. His moral indignation is a major driving force of The Wicker Man‘s plot, following his desperation to find and rescue Rowan Morrison, as informed by his faith. It is this same faith which makes Howie so resistant to the ways of the island, despite how enticing and fun they seem. However, to be a true follower of Christ, one must suffer all that he did, including temptation.
As Christ spent 40 days in the desert being tempted by the devil, Howie’s final night on Summerisle in The Green Man is an evening of the almost complete bombardment of his resolve. The island’s only true moment of hospitability towards Howie has a naked Willow in the room adjacent to Howie’s, thumping against the wall and door whilst singing her siren song:
“How a maid can milk a bull,
And every stroke a bucketful.”
Howie’s whole being burns with desire as he tenderly caresses the wall that separates him from Willow. Alas his imitation of Christ is near perfect and he resists the temptation. The frustration – how his fate may have changed if he submitted, how his sin would have been his redemption.
