MovieChat Forums > The Wicker Man (1974) Discussion > My Alternate Ending Idea...

My Alternate Ending Idea...


After Sergeant Howie is burned to death in the wicker man, the scene should've flashed to an update of a failed harvest. All the citizens would blame Lord Summerisle for the failure of the harvest. All the plant life begins dying. Lord Summerisle begins freaking out, realizing that his religious beliefs were false, and that his people no longer trust him. The sky becomes dark, the clouds become blackened, thunder begins rumbling throughout the island, and in the distance Lord Summerisle hears the haunting sounds of Sergeant Howie saying "A CUUUURRRRRSSSSSEEEE!!!!!!"

Even though this movie is a definite "cult" classic, and the ending is unforgettable...I still think that would've made a cool alternate ending.

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[deleted]

I too would have like a followup to Howie's odd prophecy.

Or, Hammer studios buys the rights, deploys Peter Cushing to stop Summersisle.

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Or maybe the villager believe Howie, and release him, no longer trusting Lord Summerisle

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Why do people insist on posting this moronic supposition?

The crops are not going to fail again. Why? We're told why the crops grow so well on the island in the first place. It's the gulf stream and the rich volcanic soil combined with the fact of the modern cultivar techniques of the late 1870s scientific advancement that allowed strains of plants to be developed that suited the growing season of the island. One bad season in over a hundred years of cultivation is a phenomenal success to failure rate. It's not going to happen again.

Why do idiots bother to watch a movie if they're not going to PAY ATTENTION to the dialogue?

againstglobalism wrote:

After Sergeant Howie is burned to death in the wicker man, the scene should've flashed to an update of a failed harvest. All the citizens would blame Lord Summerisle for the failure of the harvest. All the plant life begins dying. Lord Summerisle begins freaking out, realizing that his religious beliefs were false, and that his people no longer trust him. The sky becomes dark, the clouds become blackened, thunder begins rumbling throughout the island, and in the distance Lord Summerisle hears the haunting sounds of Sergeant Howie saying "A CUUUURRRRRSSSSSEEEE!!!!!!"

Even though this movie is a definite "cult" classic, and the ending is unforgettable...I still think that would've made a cool alternate ending.

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I wasn't referring to any sort of scientific logic. I was talking about a supernatural curse destroying any possibility of crops growing again. Geez! Talk about totally ruining an idea for an alternate ending.

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@Lokisgodhi
I'm sick of seeing your retarded comment everywhere on this board. Ugh, regardless of the soil quality, there can be countless other reasons (rains/flooding/heat/drought) that can cause crop failure at ANYTIME. Got that "fool"?

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How about an alternate ending where you shut the fuck up.

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not a bad idea.

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I sort of liked not knowing.

If they had definitively said "the crops failed", then it suggests that Howie's curse is real. If they show "the crops are renewed," the implication is that the pagan rites are real.

The movie isn't about that. It's not about the supernatural. It's about the lunatic zealots of this particular cult island. It's a culture clash, it's a war of ideas in some ways, yes, but it's not trying to make a statement about the supernatural. It's creepy because of the madness of the people of the island. We don't need to be shown failed crops because the reason their sacrificial rite is wrong has nothing to do with its success or failure.

Besides which, the final shot is genius. Why cut to "one year later" and plop down a totally different ending?

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Na.

It would have been much better if after Howie's demise, it faded out to black on the sun, followed on screen by "That autumn a bumper harvest came to Summerisle".

Then some jaunty music and a montage of photos of the villagers enjoying their harvest festival, with the final picture one of Lord Summerisle laughing heartily surrounded by a bevy of Summerisle's finest.

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