Picnic at Hanging Rock

Introduction

Picnic at Hanging Rock is a difficult film to describe without spoiling, so please forgive the lack of detail here.

On Valentine's Day 1900, a group of schoolgirls and teachers from Appleyard College go on an excursion to 'Hanging Rock', a spot sacred to the Aborigines.

Four of the senior girls leave the main group to explore the area. They, along with the rest of the students, suddenly lie down and fall asleep. Upon waking, Miranda, Marion and Irma pass through a gap in the rock face, leaving Edith, who lets out a blood curdling scream. The party returns to school without the three girls and a teacher who went to look for them. Meanwhile, a traumatised Edith has no recollection of what happened on Hanging Rock.

Peter Weir is more well known for his mainstream work, such as Dead Poets Society, The Truman Show and Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, so Picnic at Hanging Rock stands out because it concentrates more on emotion than on spectacle.

Video

Picnic at Hanging Rock is a gorgeously photographed film, making full use of the beautiful scenery and with excellent period costumes. The transfer is very good on the Director's Cut, but sadly the picture has not been restored since the original DVD release. The Original Version, included as an extra feature, is of inferior quality due to the source material available.

Audio

One of the man features of Picnic at Hanging Rock is the superb score, with the haunting pan pipes and extremely creepy sound design. The Director's Cut has Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 stereo tracks, but the Original Version only has 2.0 stereo.

English HoH subtitles are available.

Extra Features

The main selling point of this set is the inclusion of the longer Original Version which was previously unavailable. The picture quality is not as good as the Director's Cut, but it's great to see the film as it was originally released with the extra scenes included.

A Dream Within A Dream - a comprehensive 113 minute documentary covering much of the filming process, talking about each cast member in detail, with contributions from Peter Weir and other members of the cast and crew - an excellent feature.

A Recollection - Hanging Rock 1900 - this is a made for TV documentary from 1975, filmed at Hanging Rock.

Joan Lindsay interview - this interview with the book's author was recorded in 1974 and she talks about aspects of her life and writing the novel, refusing to give straight answers to questions about Picnic at Hanging Rock.

Audio Interview With Karen Robson (Irma) - this was a telephone interview and is far louder than any of the other material on the disc, so be prepared to turn the volume down!

Hanging Rock and Martindale Hall - Then and Now - an odd addition of some drifting images and accompanying music.

The Day of St Valentine - Tony S. Ingram, a 13-year-old schoolboy, obtained rights from Joan Lindsay to make a student film with his friends in 1968 and what he shot is presented here with Ingram providing a commentary and the dialogue subtitled.

Scenes deleted for The Director's Cut - these were included in the original version and are presented here to show what was removed.

Stills and Poster Gallery - over seven minutes of images that play automatically, accompanied by Helen Morse reading an excerpt from the novel.

Conclusion

Picnic at Hanging Rock is a very eerie and atmospheric picture, one that stays with you long after it's finished. Peter Weir poses many questions but never attempts to answer them - that's the viewer's job and why the film works.

With assured direction by Weir, beautiful cinematography and superb performances by the entire cast, notably Rachel Roberts as the Headmistress and Anne Lambert as Miranda, the iconic figure in the film, this is a haunting and mystical film that stands up to repeat viewings - I watched it three times this week, getting something new each time.

The book upon which the film is based is widely believed to be based on real events, something which Joan Lindsay never confirmed or denied - the most she would say is that some elements were true, others not, but not saying which were which. This great film stays true to the mystery element in a terrific slow-burning thriller with moments of psychological horror. It's a film where you get out what you put in and if you invest yourself you'll be well rewarded.

This three disc Deluxe Edition is a must for any fan of the film and is thoroughly recommended.