“Classic horror has such a different vibe than current horror. Current horror tends to rely on suspense and big scream inducing moments. Classic horror goes for the slow burn. You might not be jumping out of your seat, but you’ll feel like you want to slither out of it. Things get weirder and more uncomfortable until you realize what it’s all about and then you’re scared. Or just weirded out. The Wicker Man is no exception.
A cop is sent to a small island to investigate a missing girl. He finds this strange community of seemingly pagan devotees, preparing for their spring festivities. It’s practically a musical, as the residents are often found singing songs that sound joyous at initial glance, but are really kinda twisted once you pay attention to the lyrics. And they’re obsessed with the ideas of sex and fertility.
Things just get weirder and weirder as we fall deeper and deeper down the rabbit hole. Who is the missing girl? What happened to her? And what the heck are all these crazy people doing? It’s a pretty well known spoiler by now what happens, but I’ll refrain from saying it, just in case. I already knew when I first saw this (it’s actually why I wanted to see it), but I can only imagine how jarring it must be to find out while watching”