A remarkably charming, off-beat romance may be one of the last things that one would expect the film Wicker to turn out to be. Yet, this wonderful fable utilizes its ace-in-the-hole star, Olivia Colman, to full advantage and never looks back.
In a seemingly isolated village, near the shores of an unnamed sea, lives the Fisherwoman (Colman). A dirty, single, and constantly insulted town punching bag, the fisherwoman seems as though she has a good heart and wishes no one any harm. When her loneliness begins to consume her, she enlists the services of the Basketmaker (Peter Dinklage) to create her a husband. This, he does, in the form of the Wicker Husband (Alexander Skarsgård). This transaction elicits outrage from the townsfolk who look to ostracize the Fisherwoman as well as her new husband through any means available to them, such as subterfuge or even luring the Wicker Man away from the Fisherwoman.
Writers/directors Alex Huston Fischer and Eleanor Wilson tell a rather complex story in a very straightforward manner and that makes for a far more enjoyable outing than one might be expecting. The look and atmosphere of the film allows the fable aspect of the story to take center stage as the bizarre events unfolding onscreen suddenly seem less unlikely given the world created by the dreamlike cinematography by Lol Crawley as well as the superb art direction courtesy Hedvig Király and Adel Lengyel.
But, it is the performances from Olivia Colman and Alexander Skarsgård that carry the bulk of the film. Of the two, Colman shoulders the heaviest load and proves up to the task at every turn. She proves likeable from the moment she is introduced and her interactions with the townspeople and her new husband showcase a kind but lonely woman. As the sympathetic Basketmaker, Peter Dinklage delivers a wonderful, if underused performance that drives the story forward and then to its conclusion. Skarsgård also is allowed to imbue the Wicker Man with character and emotion that echoes that of Boris Karloff’s work as the monster in Frankenstein (1931).
Alexander Skarsgård and Olivia Colman in “Wicker.”
A lovingly crafted film that showcases romance amongst the forgotten, Wicker exceeds any expectations one may have, expect the assumption that the film’s star, Olivia Colman, will deliver a performance capable of shouldering the emotional weight of the entire film and then some.
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| Producer: | Olivia Colman, Ed Sinclair, Tom Carver, Justin Lothrop, Brent Stiefel, Brad Zimmerman, David Michôd, Andrea Cornwell, Oliver Kassman, Tim Headington, Lia Buman, Ryan Heller, Michael Bloom |
| Release Date: | October 23, 2026 |
| Running Time: | 105 minutes |
| Starring: | Olivia Colman, Alexander Skarsgård, Elizabeth Debicki, Peter Dinklage, Marli Siu, Richard E. Grant, Nabhaan Rizwan |
| Writer: | Alex Huston Fischer, Eleanor Wilson |
| MPAA Rating: | R (for sexual content, language and brief full nudity) |
| Director: | Alex Huston Fischer, Eleanor Wilson |
| Distributor: | Black Bear |
| External Info: | Official Website |
