The village Fisherwoman (Olivia Colman) has always moved to the beat of her own drum, but even she can’t ignore the whispers from others about how different she is. She commissions the local basketmaker (Peter Dinklage) to weave her a husband (Alexander Skarsgard). But even the Fisherwoman never could have imagined how life changing this decision would be, not only for herself, but for the others in the village too.
Adapted from the short story by Ursula Wills-Jones, Wicker is an unconventional romantic comedy that seemed like it would be one thing from its trailer, but ended up being so much more. Romantic comedies are hard enough to come by these days, let alone one that dares to be different. It really was a joy from start to finish.
Colman has starred in a variety of roles over the years and she never fails to nail the brief. Her performance this time around was more nuanced. On the surface, the Fisherwoman would scoff at people’s words yet deep down they would actually have quite the effect. To go from this to the change that occurs when the Wicker Husband comes into her life is truly beautiful. Similarly, I enjoyed every single scene that Dinklage was in and I appreciated Skarsgard for perfectly selling this man made of wicker all the way down to his movements and mannerisms. Also, Elizabeth Debicki, who portrayed the Tailor’s Wife, really was that bitch and I was here for it.
From the very beginning, the film felt very much like a fairytale. With the quaint English town and the sprawling countryside, the colorful cast of characters (neither of which had a proper name) and five separate chapter cards, I felt like I was watching a raunchy Disney film and I mean that in the best way possible. It was very funny and had proper British humor, but at the end of the day it touched on some pretty deep messages. The illusion of the perfect marriage, how detrimental social envy can be and learning to accept love were all featured and really gave the film so much more depth.
If you’re in the mood for something totally different, I recommend checking out Wicker. It will make you laugh out loud, it will make you blush at its dirty jokes, but it will also resonate with those of us who have ever felt like we never truly belonged.
Rating: ♥️♥️♥️♥️
