Speaking of the climax, that is a huge part of the problem. I like some of Neil LaBute's movies, and he definitely knows how to conceal surprise plot developments. But with this movie, he simply doesn't offer enough distractions and red herrings to prevent the audience from figuring out what the twist is. I will say this of myself: I am not very good at all when it comes to solving mysteries, mainly because I'd rather not. For me, a movie is doing its job when I am so involved from scene to scene that I don't have time to guess at what will come. In The Wicker Man, LaBute keeps the action at a snail's pace so that the viewer will see things coming a mile away.
On the plus side, I enjoyed Nicolas Cage's rather exasperated performance as Malus. It almost seemed his impatience on screen was an acknowledgment that the script didn't give him anything to do. Of course, Cage co-produced the movie so maybe he shouldn't be let of the hook.
The DVD has excellent technical specs; the audio/visual qualities are what you'd expect from a studio release these days. Extras, however, are fairly light. There is a commentary track from Neil LaBute (and other participants) that I sampled - it was consistent with other directors' tracks I've heard on various bad movies, no perception whatsoever that the movie doesn't work. The extended unrated version is basically the same movie with a slightly extended ending. Don't believe the hype on the front of the DVD case — the only thing shocking is that they didn't simply include the extended ending as a "deleted scene."
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Article comments
1 - Vern Halen
I don't know how I would react today, but when I was a kid, the original scared the crap outta me.