Review of Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) by Grant P — 06 Apr 2009

Perhaps it is Peter Weir's intention to draw such decisive attention to the poetry of Miranda's opening lines to The Picnic at Hanging Rock; "What we see and what we seem are but a dream... a dream within a dream." Her recitation not only sets the atmosphere and tone for the film but alludes to its eternal questions and mystical philosophy. As a cinematic work, The Picnic at Hanging Rock is so metaphorically-laden that it's a dream within our own.

Weir's direction, miraculously, creates a distortion of reality while preserving continuity and verisimilitude. This is aided through the film's haunting soundtrack, which is grounded in the concrete sounds of traditional classical music (Bach, Mozart, Tchaicovsky) mixed with a more contemporary mysticism of the panflute and church organ (by Gheorghe Zamfir and Marcel Cellier, respectively). Sounds of forces of nature, particularly the wind, also contribute to the ambiance. The squalls gradually become so overwhelming and frequent that they effectively create an impending doom. They allude to a vortex, an infinite void, the overall mystery within itself (or "a dream within a dream" if you prefer). Additionally, the four girls' journey to the rock features several instances where Weir utilizes a hallucinogenic superimposition of images with particular gestures and movements; many of these sequences are filmed in slow-motion, which complement the dizzying sound textures. All of these elements and techniques eventually amalgamate into the form of a Miranda's mirage.

The narrative is quite minimal for a mystery; its aesthetic is actually somewhat similar to The Draughtsman's Contract, the film from which I learned of this one. The final answer is irrelevant; it is the pursuance of the question that endlessly provokes both the viewer and the film's townspeople. And like Greenaway's work, The Picnic at Hanging Rock definitely allows for interpretation of an interpretation. While the minimalist narrative may leave a healthy amount of unanswered questions, they are the most alluring element. Much of the dialogue and monologue, particularly in the first act, is trance-inducing by nature. References to Saint Valentine (given the date of the event), Miranda's likeness to a Botticelli angel/the innocence and beauty of a swan, Shakespearean poetry, and "Wreck of the Hesperus" are all given perplexing but absorbing religious connotations.