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The inside of the Bag

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California police officer Edward Malus (Nicolas Cage) travels to the small, private island of Summersisle, located in the Puget Sound off the northern coast of Washington, to investigate the disappearance of the seven-year-old daughter of his ex-fiancée Willow Woodward (Kate Beahan), after Willow writes him a letter requesting his help. Willow believes the islanders dislike her for leaving the island and almost marrying him, and she thinks they may have taken Rowan (Erika-Shaye Gair) to punish her for her wild ways. When Edward arrives, however, no one (except for Willow) claims to have even heard of Rowan. Continuing to dig for information, Edward discovers a school record with Rowan's name crossed out. The locals suddenly start to remember Rowan, but their explanations of her whereabouts are bizarre, as are their religious practices, and Edward becomes determined to find out the truth.

The Wicker Man is a 2006 American remake of The Wicker Man (1973) (1973), for which the original screenplay was written by English playwright Anthony Shaffer, who was inspired by David Pinner's 1967 novel Ritual, in which a Christian policeman is called to investigate what appears to be the ritual murder of an eight-year-old girl in the English village of Thorn. Shaffer's screenplay was adapted for the remake by American film maker Neil N. LaBute, who also directed this movie.

One hundred (100) US dollars. Ulysses Grant is on the $50 bill, and Edward gave the harbor pilot two of them to fly him to Summersisle.

Not appreciably. The plot is essentially the same. A lot of the dialog is word-for-word as in the original. Like many remakes, however, minor details such as names, places, and relationships have been changed. For example, Sergeant Howie is now Edward Malus, named after Edward Woodward, who played Howie in the original movie. Willow is now the ex-fiancée of Edward Malus and mother of young Rowan, who is seven years old instead of 12 and who turns out to be Edward's daughter. Summersisle is now located in the state of Washington instead of Scotland. Lord Summerisle is replaced by Sister Summersisle (Ellen Burstyn) (note the additional "s"), and all the major roles (except for Edward) are played by women. Summersisle is known for its production of honey rather than fruit. Edward becomes the chosen one, not because he is a virgin but because he is a stranger connected to Summersisle by blood. However, most of the pagan practices so subtly referenced in the original movie are absent from this one.

On the day of "death and rebirth" (May 1st), Edward punches out Sister Beech (Diane Delano) and, disguised in her bear costume, joins the parade led by Sister Summersisle. When the parade ends, Edward sees Rowan tied to a large tree with a pile of twigs at her feet, about to be burned. He runs to Rowan, unties her, and carries her into the woods. When they elude the pursing villagers, he sets her down. Rowan runs on ahead, and Edward follows her lead, ending up right back to the waiting villagers. Rowan runs to Willow and Sister Summersisle and asks whether she did it right. "You came of your own free will," Summersisle says to Edward, and the villagers begin to close in on him. He tries to hold them back with his gun, but they eventually overtake him. He is carried to a clearing that contains a huge "man" made of wicker. He is hoisted into the wicker man, and Rowan bears the torch that sets it on fire. As the fire encompasses the wicker man, the crowd chants, "The drone must die!", in the belief that the sacrifice will restore their honey production. In the final scene, Willow and Sister Honey (Leelee Sobieski) are seen in a bar, talking with two male police officers. They invite the men to go home with them.

Yes. In the alternate ending, known as the unrated ending, Edward's legs are broken and a mask of bees is placed over his head before he is placed in the wicker man. In addition, the final scene (where Willow and Honey solicit the police officers) is not shown.