Mad Times

Picnic At Hanging Rock

This movie is set in the late 1800s, but from the first frame it's sadly obvious that it was filmed in the 1970s. It tells the true story of a picnic trip to the titular Hanging Rock, a volcanic formation in Australia. The picnickers are a group of boarding school girls. It's hard to tell how old they're supposed to be. The actresses all look to be in their 20s, but they act somewhat like teenagers and somewhat like pre-teens. During the picnic, a few of the girls wander off and are never seen again. The remainder of the film follows the community's attempts to find them and come to terms with their disappearance. Directed by Peter Weir, the story almost seems to suggest that something occult or extraterrestrial was going on with lots of shots of the girls wandering off zombie-like accompanied by strange humming spooky music. The overall effect seems to have been intended to be artsy, and you can still watch it that way if you are very careful to maintain a straight face and elevated nose throughout. But if at any point you allow yourself to subside into giggles, you'll be as lost as those schoolgirls.