WHILE the dated special effects and shonky sets of some horror films means that with time they become more comical than scary, The Wicker Man is still as chilling as ever.

The 1973 British film, starring Edward Woodward, Christopher Lee and Britt Eckland, is a cult classic.

It tells the story of an upright Catholic policeman, Sergeant Howie (Woodward) who is lured to an island in the Western Isles to investigate a schoolgirl's disappearance.

But he begins to uncover evidence of pagan fertility cults and human sacrifice, presided over by Christopher Lee as Lord Summerisle in a role that was supposedly written for him.

Sergeant Howie's religious beliefs - he is against sex before marriage and is a virgin - jar with the lusty ways of the locals, which involve promiscuity, outdoor copulation and the teaching of paganism in schools, among other things.

As time goes on it becomes apparent that he may have been brought to the island on false pretences and that rather than solving a crime, he may be about to become the victim of one.

Complete with one of the most blood-curdling screams in the history of cinema, this is a film that will stay with you long after the final credits roll.

Harbour Lights, Southampton, April 12 - 13 only. Box office: 023 8033 5533.