3. The Wicker Man (1973) (Dir. Robin Hardy)
The Wicker Man‘s uncomfortably-realised atmosphere has made it essential horror viewing, but the British classic has always thrived on the reputation of its ending, one renowned for its extremely macabre and downbeat circumstances. After receiving a letter regarding a young girl who has apparently gone missing, Sergeant Neil Howie (a virgin) travels to the remote island of Summerisle off the coast of Scotland to investigate. There he encounters a strange, pagan-bound community who presume to taunt and provoke him over the course of the movie.
Eventually – after several days of uncomfortable exchanges and confusion – Howie is lured to the peak of a cliff where a giant, terrifying wicker man has been placed for his benefit. It is revealed that the entire length of his trip has been pre-ordained, and that he, as a virgin, will be used as a sacrifice for one of the island’s ancient rituals. Howie is forced inside, where the inhabits of Summerisle proceed to light the wicker man and set him ablaze. The community dance and celebrate, ignoring Howie’s relentless screams and prayers.
It’s not just the uncomfortable atmosphere apparent in every frame of director Robin Hardy’s masterpiece that makes the ending so perfect. Here is the culmination of the entire plot, a rare ending in where a character is simply put to death that genuinely works. As Howie prays to Jesus – an act that we know will not free him from this particular fate – the locals simply rejoice around him. The Wicker Man embraces its absurdity in these final moments, leaving audiences with a gut-wrenching sense of horror that they can’t explain. It is bleak, but ultimately essential: Howie never stood a chance, after all, and that’s exactly the point. The joke, as they say, was always on him.
