Favorite Film #55, 1975: Picnic at Hanging Rock. Directed by Peter Weir

There is nothing else like Picnic at Hanging Rock. It’s an erotic mystery horror film where the mystery remains unsolved, the killer doesn’t exist, and there isn’t any sex. Instead, it’s the implications of these ideas that ultimately doom the characters. It’s a film where the repressed, wealthy schoolgirls, headmistresses, and British socialites try to deny their base human instincts, and declare themselves lords over nature. And they either eventually succumb to their natural environment, or are punished for their hubris. And what most impresses me about Picnic is how critically important the atmosphere is. It doesn’t just enhance the story, it is the story, literally driving the entire film to it’s conclusion. And the look of Picnic is just extraordinary, with it’s gorgeously horrific natural backdrops, and soft natural lighting literally achieved by placing a veil over the camera lens. Picnic at Hanging Rock is easily the greatest Australian film of all time, and directing genius Peter Weir’s magnum opus. It’s the kind of film that leaves you with a distinctly uncomfortable feeling that you can’t quite put your finger on, but makes you lie in bed at night thinking nonstop about it.