I Saw Wicker in 4DX. It Was a Horny, Sensory Journey That Makes Me Excited for What’s Next for the Format

We all wanted the same thing. By we, I mean, the people who filed into the Regal Times Square’s 4DX theater on an unassuming Tuesday afternoon. I can’t say we came to this place for magic, because that’s an AMC thing, and I’m a Regal Unlimited girlie, but we did come here to be given the simulated sensation of being thrusted and pounded by the Wicker Husband, played by Alexander Skarsgård in the film Wicker. For those who haven’t heard of Wicker, the movie follows a fisherwoman (Olivia Colman) who, spurned by her local village for being single and smelly, contracts a basket weaver (Peter Dinklage) to construct her a husband of wicker. (And yes, no one in the film has names, they are all called by their professions — Fisherwoman, Basket Weaver — except married women, who are known as Tailor’s Wife, Baker’s Wife, etc.‚ The first time I ever set foot in a 4DX theater was in 2014 in Bangkok. The technology had not yet made its way stateside, but I like to experience the cinema abroad on every international trip. Seeing that it would be a novel experience, I went to a showing of the Andy Serkis-starring Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, complete with splashes of water during jungle scenes and a chair that seemed to angle to match the camera. It felt like being at a Universal theme park ride, and I wondered not whether, but how long, it would be until 4DX made it to the states. Of course, 4DX is now just another part of the premium movie landscape, alongside 3D films, IMAX, Infinity Vision, Dolby Cinema, XL, the list goes on. The gimmickiness remains. The only other two films I’ve seen in 4DX, besides Wicker and Apes, are Wicked — “Defying Gravity” was thrilling — and Twisters, which probably best utilized the technology, given that the theater created a windstorm every time the titular weather pattern appeared on screen. Wicker, as a film, should not warrant a 4DX screening. The format is best reserved for films that engage in big spectacle,