#REVIEW: “WICKER”

By Mr. Will Wong

WICKER isn’t for everyone and that’s completely okay. This adaptation of Ursula Willis’ short story is for you.  Alex Huston Fischer and Eleanor Wilson helm this completely bonkers Romance Fantasy, which somehow magically works.

The story centers on Fisherwoman (Olivia Colman). She’s an aging spinster who’s still single. She smells like fish and because of this, her whole town shuns her. She decides to prank this patriarchal judgy little town, going to the Basket Weaver (Peter Dinklage), hiring him to weave her a man. While this initially was only supposed to be a joke to prove a point, this Wicker Man (Alexander Skarsgård), magically does come to life. He becomes a full-on loving supportive husband, who helps out with all the chores and also is a great lover. This deeply upsets the entire town including The Baker (Ben Ashenden) and the Tailor’s Wife (Elizabeth Debicki), who is the ultimate scowling mean girl, having bullied Fisherwoman since childhood. The arrival of this perfect Wicker Man really sets some hearts aflutter among the women around town. It makes them also realize how poorly their husbands are treating them and also it makes the husbands very threatened by this perfect Wicker Man. Jealousy leads to sabotage and ultimately, the Wicker Husband‘s loyalty to Fisherwoman is questioned, potentially sabotaging everything Fisherwoman and Wicker Husband have built together.

Somehow this overarching theme of otherness, them and they, seems to resonate still with an audience of today. People are really going to connect with this Film. While this whole plot line is completely fantastical and unbelievable, somehow it is sold by a phenomenal ensemble cast, led by Olivia Colman as the Fisherwoman. She is phenomenal here. She’s vulnerable, insecure when she needs to be, but also so effective when a fire is lit under her. She’s ferocious. Alexander Skarsgård is the perfect casting choice here as Wicker Husband. Physically, he looks the part, but also he has this stoicism and also this gentle level-headedness to him that really works. And he’s actually the most normal character in this whole entire story. And he’s not even human. Peter Dinklage is just hamming it up here as the Basket Weaver. He’s just having so much fun in the role and we love watching it. Elizabeth Debicki is deliciously evil here. She’s just so sinister and does a fantastic job making us hate her guts. But she does manage to do it in a way where you empathize with her because you can see where her misery comes from. Job well done, on all accounts.

WICKER is a wonderful film, made for people who are twisted and love quirky things. It’s romantic, it’s delightfully hilarious, fantastical. It’s also got some elements of Body Horror in it, too, going completely against the grain for a medieval romance.

Elevation Pictures release it in theaters this weekend, October 23, 2026.