Wrath of the Gods potentially sees the world of The Wicker Man ends, with the release of the third film in the series some 53 years later The Wicker Man was unleashed on the audience. The wicker tree followed in 2011, and now we have Wrath of the Godsinspired by a scenario that remained dormant for several years.
The initial script was salvaged from the abandoned archives of the original film. The Wicker Man by director Robin Hardy, found in the attic of the old family home. Robin’s son, Justin, adapted the script with his half-brother, Dominic, to bring their father’s initial vision to life. Wrath of the Gods is the only film in the trilogy not directed by Robin; instead, directing responsibilities were taken on by his son, Justin, who had previously directed the 2022 documentary. Children of the Wicker Man. Tragically, Justin died a few weeks ago Wrath of the Gods premiered at FrightFest.
The story begins with Anna (Christiane Schaldemose), who travels to the island of Hel, which is apparently off the coast of Scotland, to bury her husband after his suicide. She and her daughter, Gudrun, don’t seem to want to stay in this isolated, desolate land, and neither do the locals, who treat Anna with disdain, as if she brought (or was herself) a curse. The local priest seems to be a harbinger of doom, and old acquaintances are told to stay away from her. She even receives a cold and stilted reception from her father-in-law, Tulloch (Francis Magee).
Things take a turn for the worse when a local girl is kidnapped late at night. Fingers are pointed at the island’s outsider – Anna – who is becoming more and more isolated. From there, old wounds are reopened and accusations begin to surface. She finds comfort in Joy (Dawn Douglas), who offers comfort and support, but after repeated attempts to find the missing child, Anna suspects that someone – or something – might be responsible for the kidnappings. A note left by her husband telling her to “find the sick man” could prove vital. In order to find out who kidnapped the girl, a more in-depth search – both at sea and internally – is necessary.
Wrath of the Gods walk very close to the path traveled The Wicker Man: a stranger on an isolated island, a missing child, a strange community and a story balanced between the real and the surreal. One difference however is that Wrath of the Gods leans more towards social issues and monsters grounded in reality rather than folklore.
Robin Hardy tried to Wrath of the Gods a few years later The wicker tree was released – the funds were even obtained via crowdfunding – but unfortunately the financial goal could not be reached. Interestingly, Robin’s original vision centered around the wrath and vengeance of the gods after an international entertainment company attempted to build a theme park based on the mythology of the gods inside an Icelandic volcano. Justin’s Wrath of the Gods is very different and much more grounded than his father’s concept.
Robin’s original concept of an Icelandic theme park would have been a fascinating avenue to explore, true to the world of The Wicker Man while offering something new to viewers. However, a story of this magnitude would surely require significant funding. Justin Hardy was economical with his vision, shooting entirely on Shetland, an archipelago between Scotland, Norway and the Faroe Islands, using a cast from the surrounding areas and incorporating the natural dialect of the area.
Hardy does a great job injecting social realism into a story steeped in mythology, but much of it is padded out with questionable tangents. The attempt to create unease and tension tends to collapse and all momentum stops due to padding. This could have been a tighter, simpler and more exciting time deal. Wrath of the Gods has some good ideas, but it seems caught between two minds: trying to be fresh and original while wanting to stick with what worked so well in the beginning. Wrath of the Gods is dedicated to Caroline Hardy, Justin’s mother, who served as an unofficial executive producer on The Wicker Manand which was an essential part of the classic folk horror film being made (as detailed in Children of the Wicker Man) With the Hardy family involved in the making of these films for over 50 years, Wrath of the Gods serves as a nostalgic tribute to a family defined by The Wicker Man.
Music from the film: 3 out of 5
