Wicker
Wicker is a fable about love, lust and tradition. It shows how an outcast, in an effort to thumb her nose at the mockery of a society she doesn’t even desire to be a part of, inadvertently rocks it to its core. It is about a culture that lives based on customs that stop being appealing as soon as people see someone else no longer living by them. It is funny, clever and not quite as bold as it initially seems.
The protagonist gleefully throws her unconventional eroticism at her neighbors, to make them as uncomfortable as possible. Yet the movie stops short of embracing that same attitude. It plays things a little too safe, despite a few forward moments. The sex is mostly used as an off-screen gag (with the punchline of the bed having to get fixed after each of their escapades).
It is definitely an example of symbolism working better than a more literal story would have (all of the characters are named after what they are). It may have been stronger as a short story. However, it still succeeds in this form, even if we can catch glimpses of what could have been had the filmmakers pushed the envelope more.
It is fun, creating a world totally tilted toward men, where women are merely “wife” or “spinster.” Marriage is about property ownership. One couple not behaving under those rules could cause that entire structure to topple over, causing personal insecurities to spill everywhere. It once again proves that Olivia Colman is game for anything, even if that means having simulated sex with a man made out of wicker.
The Fisherwoman is laughed at in her village. She is far too old to be unmarried and, due to her profession, she smells. For her part, she has a very low opinion of marriage. As a joke, and maybe because she’s a bit lonely, she pays the Basket Weaver to make her a husband. The Fisherwoman and her anthropomorphic Wicker Husband become the talk of the village, turning everyone’s certainty of the rightness of their traditions, and especially gender roles, upside down.
Fables tend to be set in a place similar to the world they are commenting on, but with some major exaggerations. That is the case with Ursula Wills’ 2008 “The Wicker Husband,” the short story which Wicker (100 minutes, minus the end credits) has been adapted from. The central location here is a place where women only exist as adornments to their husbands. They are homemakers, cooks, mothers and sexual partners. The husbands are the providers. Nothing more is expected of them and they are awarded obedience in return. Part of the wedding ceremony involves the man placing a collar around the woman’s neck, as a symbol of his possession of her.
The Fisherwoman thinks this is stupid. Her relationship with Wicker Husband consists of her working and him fixing up the house, as well as lots of sex. The other men are confused about this arrangement and the women are jealous. The themes don’t get much deeper than that. Though, like all good fables, people get what they deserve in the end, the good and the bad. That makes for a satisfying conclusion to an enjoyable, if slight, parable.
3½ out of 5
Cast:
Olivia Colman as Fisherwoman
Alexander Skarsgård as Wicker Husband
Elizabeth Debicki as Tailor’s Wife
Peter Dinklage as Basket Weaver
Written/Directed by Alex Huston Fischer and Eleanor Wilson
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