In all my years as a member of this wonderful website, there are approximately 120 films - out of literally thousands - that I gave a 10 out of 10 rating. Those titles, covering a variety of genres, are close to perfect in my humble opinion and they all left an everlasting impression on me. Of that already rather small selection, however, only a handful of films genuinely blew me away from start to finish, haunted my thoughts for days afterwards, and fascinate me so immensely that I want to analyze and embrace every slightest detail of them. "Wake in Fright" is such a favorite, and so are "Sweet Movie", "Aguirre - Wrath of God", "M", "The City of Lost Children", and "Santa Sangre". The elite band finally has another new member, as "Picnic at Hanging Rock" is a work of pure cinematic art.
I'm tempted to refer it as "Peter Weir's Picnic at Hanging Rock", but I must refrain from using 'only' the director's name. I realize it's a giant cliché, but this movie - more than any other movie I've ever seen - is truly a collective achievement, in which every important aspect is in perfect harmony with the rest. Peter Weir, first and foremost, is the most essential contributor, of course, because he's the glue that keeps the fantastic wholesome together. The ensemble cast is stupendous, with seemingly every member meticulously and ideally cast for the role she/he depicts, like Rachel Roberts as the eerie headmistress, Helen Morse as the cherubic French teacher, John Jarrett as the Outback country boy, and - naturally - the heavenly Anne Lambert as the Botticelli angel Miranda. There's Russell Boyd's hypnotizing cinematography, with almost too many highlights and touches of sheer ingenuity to list. Just look at the magnificent use of simple things, like daylight or slow-motion. Kudos, also, to whoever in charge of scouting and finding all these great locations, such as the elite boarding school in the middle of the Outback and the breathtaking titular beauty spot. Going hand-in-hand with Boyd's brilliant camerawork is the downright mesmerizing music in "Picnic at Hanging Rock". Bruce Smeaton composed an excellent original score, but then extended with some classical pieces and the pan-flute tunes of Georghe Zamphir, it becomes truly exquisite! Seriously, the music is so incredibly beautiful...
But perhaps - undoubtedly, even - the absolute greatest thing about "Picnic at Hanging Rock" is the enigma of it all. Fact, fiction or partially fact; - who cares. As created by Joan Lindsay for her novel, and devotedly turned into a film screenplay by Cliff Green, this story is a mystery without a solution. That alone makes it unique already, but somehow it became one of the only stories in history in which it is acceptable the puzzle isn't resolved. Moreover, we wouldn't want it any other way. The true identity of London's Jack the Ripper never got revealed, and the young girls who vanished on Valentine's Day in the year 1900 during a picnic at Australia's Hanging Rock were never found; - period. That's the way it should always remain.
I'm tempted to refer it as "Peter Weir's Picnic at Hanging Rock", but I must refrain from using 'only' the director's name. I realize it's a giant cliché, but this movie - more than any other movie I've ever seen - is truly a collective achievement, in which every important aspect is in perfect harmony with the rest. Peter Weir, first and foremost, is the most essential contributor, of course, because he's the glue that keeps the fantastic wholesome together. The ensemble cast is stupendous, with seemingly every member meticulously and ideally cast for the role she/he depicts, like Rachel Roberts as the eerie headmistress, Helen Morse as the cherubic French teacher, John Jarrett as the Outback country boy, and - naturally - the heavenly Anne Lambert as the Botticelli angel Miranda. There's Russell Boyd's hypnotizing cinematography, with almost too many highlights and touches of sheer ingenuity to list. Just look at the magnificent use of simple things, like daylight or slow-motion. Kudos, also, to whoever in charge of scouting and finding all these great locations, such as the elite boarding school in the middle of the Outback and the breathtaking titular beauty spot. Going hand-in-hand with Boyd's brilliant camerawork is the downright mesmerizing music in "Picnic at Hanging Rock". Bruce Smeaton composed an excellent original score, but then extended with some classical pieces and the pan-flute tunes of Georghe Zamphir, it becomes truly exquisite! Seriously, the music is so incredibly beautiful...
But perhaps - undoubtedly, even - the absolute greatest thing about "Picnic at Hanging Rock" is the enigma of it all. Fact, fiction or partially fact; - who cares. As created by Joan Lindsay for her novel, and devotedly turned into a film screenplay by Cliff Green, this story is a mystery without a solution. That alone makes it unique already, but somehow it became one of the only stories in history in which it is acceptable the puzzle isn't resolved. Moreover, we wouldn't want it any other way. The true identity of London's Jack the Ripper never got revealed, and the young girls who vanished on Valentine's Day in the year 1900 during a picnic at Australia's Hanging Rock were never found; - period. That's the way it should always remain.