Children of the Wicker Man (2024) (Blu-ray Review)
DIRECTED BY: Justin Hardy
STARRING: Tim Plester
RATED: UR/Region: O/1:85/1080P/NUMBER OF DISCS 1
AVAILABLE FROM Severin Films
For a movie about one of the greatest cult horror films ever made, Children of the Wicker Man wisely avoids the biggest trap documentaries can fall into: becoming a dry lecture with prettier lighting. Instead, it feels like sitting down with the people who actually lived through the making of a genuine horror classic and letting them tell the stories—without someone interrupting every five minutes to remind you how “important” everything is.
Centered around the legacy of The Wicker Man, the documentary explores not just the movie itself, but the lasting impact it had on the families and children of the direcotor. It’s a clever angle that instantly separates it from the countless “making-of” documentaries we’ve all seen. Because let’s be honest, there are only so many times someone can explain how difficult it was filming in the Scottish countryside before your eyes start glazing over.
The interviews are the real highlight here. Everyone comes across as genuinely passionate, and you can tell The Wicker Man wasn’t just another movie someone’s dad made—it became part of these lives (for better or worse). There’s warmth, humor, nostalgia, and more than a few moments that remind you just how strange and tragic filmmaking can be.
Thankfully, the documentary doesn’t spend 90-ish minutes endlessly patting itself on the back. It balances the heartfelt memories with plenty of behind-the-scenes stories and insights into why The Wicker Man had a history just as interesting begind the scenes as it did in all.
Visually, it’s exactly what fans could hope for. There’s a healthy amount of archival material, photographs, and clips that keep everything engaging. More importantly, it understands that fans aren’t here for flashy editing—they’re here because they love The Wicker Man. The documentary respects that without drowning in nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake.
Even if you’ve already watched every documentary, commentary track, and special feature ever produced about The Wicker Man, Children of the Wicker Man still manages to bring something fresh to the table. That alone is impressive. It proves there are still new stories to tell, especially when you shift the focus away from the production and toward the people whose lives were forever shaped by it.
In the end, this is exactly what a great film documentary should be: heartfelt, funny, insightful, and made by people who clearly understand why the original continues to cast such a long shadow over horror cinema. It’s less about worshipping a classic and more about celebrating the community that grew around it.
And unlike certain visitors to Summerisle… everyone actually makes it out of this one alive. That’s got to count for something.
Extras
- Audio Interview With Co-Directors Justin Hardy, Dominic Hardy And Chris Nunn, Moderated By David Gregory, Director Of THE WICKER MAN ENIGMA
- Q&A With Co-Directors Justin Hardy, Dominic Hardy And Chris Nunn And Producer Alison Palmer
- Making-Of Featurette
- Trailer
- Optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature
- REGION-FREE
