Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Peter Weir

Writers:

Joan Lindsay (novel)
Cliff Green (screenplay)

Release Date:

2 February 1979 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery

Tagline:

Australia's First International Hit! [Video Australia]

Plot:

A story about the disappearance of several Appleyard College students, and a teacher, from Hanging Rock.

Plot Keywords:

Hanging | Hanging Rock | Student | Teacher | Disappearance

Awards:

Won BAFTA Film Award. Another 1 win & 4 nominations

Cast

Rachel Roberts	...	Mrs. Appleyard
Vivean Gray	...	Miss McCraw
Helen Morse	...	Mlle. de Poitiers
Kirsty Child	...	Miss Lumley
Tony Llewellyn-Jones	...	Tom (as Anthony Llewellyn-Jones)
Jacki Weaver	...	Minnie
Frank Gunnell	...	Mr. Whitehead
Anne-Louise Lambert	...	Miranda (as Anne Lambert)
Karen Robson	...	Irma
Jane Vallis	...	Marion
Christine Schuler	...	Edith
Margaret Nelson	...	Sara
Ingrid Mason	...	Rosamund
Jenny Lovell	...	Blanche
Janet Murray	...	Juliana

Runtime:

115 min | Australia:107 min (1998 director's cut)

Country:

Australia

Language:

English | French

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Brazil:12 | Iceland:L | Netherlands:12 | Sweden:11 | USA:TV-PG (cable rating) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 | Norway:11 | UK:PG (video rating) | USA:PG | West Germany:12 | UK:A | Australia:G | Spain:T | Spain:X | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Adelaide Hills, South Australia, Australia

Company:

Australian Film Commission, The

Trivia:

Jenny Lovell took on the role of Blanche with some objections from her mother, producer Patricia Lovell, who worried that it would appear as if Jenny had gotten the part in the film because of her mother's connections.

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: 14 February 1900 was a Wednesday, not a Saturday. While this seems to be a factual error, it is one of the subtle hints that this is a fictional story.

Quotes:

Miranda: You must learn to love someone else, apart from me, Sara. I won't be here much longer.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "HBO First Look: The Making of 'Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World' (#10.19)" (2003)

Soundtrack:

5th piano concerto

Not a detective story

I have experienced it several times that people tend to expect "Picnic at Hanging Rock" to unfold like a detective story, while it is not one, in any respect. This movie belongs to another type, to the mystery genre, and possibly stands as the finest example of a film of this kind. The main purpose of such films is to contemplate The Unknown and Peter Weir copes with that excellently. What counts most here is the atmosphere, and the focus is more on hidden emotions than on the pacing (some say that the problem with "Picnic" is that it's boring - i don't think so but I guess it depends much on your sensitivity and approach). Most fascinating thing here is possibly the way the Rock is depicted - it appears as self-conscious entity, alive in a sense which is beyond Western logic. This, I think, is the key aspect of the story, because what it really is about is the conflict between the Culture and the Nature. And don't let this put you off as 'too philosophical'. Picnic at Hanging Rock, while not being a crime story, can be involving as one - if you help this to happen, of course. If you do, you might have a lot to think about when the credits start to roll. It can happen, though, that you will be dying to see them roll - there are no movies that appeal to all of us. Then, at least, you could enjoy the set design, photography and ancient beauty of wild Australia.

Give it a try. It's worth it. 8/10