Review and Analysis of Picnic at Hanging Rock

Abstract： Picnic at Hanging Rock came out at exactly the period of revival of Australian film industry when Westerners began to cast their eyes on Australian cinema. Through the successful use of camera and symbols， the director created the national image and conveyed the idea of shaking off the British or European influences and restrictions on Australian culture.

Key words： Australia， nature； nationalism， symbols

1 Introduction： Cultural Background of the Film

Picnic at Hanging Rock， produced in 1975， was regarded as the first great film of Australian new cinema. Here， “new” means an indigenous， quality Australian cinema， with cultural nationalism as its subject matter. From the 1960s， there was a renewed campaign for government support and intervention in Australia film industry， which was caused by two factors： first， the growth of a highly literate film society movement following the similar overseas （European） cinema development； second， the development of television industry. Because of the overwhelming dominance of imported TV programs， a Senate Selected Committee， Vincent Committee was set up investigating means of encouraging Australian programs for TV. Although it focused on TV， it inevitably cared the issue of Australian film production and distribution， for “an adequate development of drama for TV can only be achieved by expansion of the film industry”.1 Australia could produce TV programs competing with the overseas in cost only if the film could be exported. It recommended government loans and tax incentives for film producers. By the end of 1960s， Philip Adams， a leader of the movement， came into political power. He contributed a lot to the new film direction for Australia： a film bank was established in 1970 （AFDC）； a film school and an experiential film fund was set up in 1973. The function of AFDC （later became AFC） was to make loans and investment in Australian films which satisfied the criteria of “Australianness”， promoted Australian cultural identity and cultural nationalism， instead of cultural dependence of USA and Britain. The aim of the “film culture” was a national cinema， a cinema that could change the situation of “no daydreams of our own”.2

In this revival period， the films favored nationalist themes and “quality” production. Picnic at Hanging Rock， one of the crucial films of the revival， is the most obviously successful film to win the favor of the world. It is widely accepted as a professional and international class film casting off the criticism of “ocker”， unprofessional or crude which was the usual perception toward Australian films before it， and enjoying the praise as “the high standards of craftsmanship”， and “with its meticulous period reconstruction and its refinement of visual atmosphere， has come to be seen as the ‘typical product of the Australian new wave”.3

2 Analysis of the Film

Based on Joan Lindsays novel of the same title， Picnic is a “period” film dealing with the key period in Australian history to achieve nationhood in the national myth-making. Through his wonderful shooting technique， which is represented through camera， music， colour， light， pace， etc.， Peter Weir created a dream for us， “a dream within a dream”. In this dream， he mingles the reality with the fantasy， and conveys his idea through every detail， shot and scene， and every sentence said by the main characters. This is a film full of symbols.

The themes of this film can be summarized as Natures victory over intellectual society， and the Australian national identity and consciousness through the inevitability of the decline of Australian Victorianism， the anti-authoritarianism through girls rebellion against the repressing College. Some critics criticized the film as “a puzzlement， an enigmatic film full of questions and provides no definite answers”，4 but that is just where the charm exists and makes it quite different from other films， especially Hollywood films， for we can interpret it from different angles. As a highly absorbing and thought-provoking film， no detail in it is accidental； instead， they are full of symbolic meaning.

The story opens at Appleyard College， a boarding school for teenage girls. The girls are all like perfectly molded dolls whose vitality are suppressed and are trained to conform to the rules and restrictions of the time. At the very beginning， one of the missing girls， Miranda， the most beautiful one， said in a kind of dream-like tone， “All that we see or we seem it but a dream in a dream.” This is one of the key sentences in the film. It sets the tone of the whole movie. This is also the last sentence from Edgar Allan Poes poem “A Dream within a Dream”. It could be understood that the film is a dream of the director， as Weir has an “auteurist orientation”，5 and what happened later is just like a dream of Miranda within her bigger dream of freedom. Edgar Allan Poe is a 19th century American romantics who is good at describing human beings inner world and the boundaries between the reality and dream. He is sensitive enough to feel the pressure of a world where science and reason reign supreme， and is interested in the discovery and colonization of the mind. In his poem， Poe cares the deep soul， places the subconscious condition of the mind under investigation and probes beneath the surface of normal existence into deep abyss of the unconscious and subconscious. Poes assumption seems to be that every mind is half mad or capable of slipping into insanity， from this rational world to the dream， because of the beauty in the dream. 6Weir deliberately uses Poes poem to illustrate the meaning that all is a dream， the dream to shake off the British or European influences and restrictions， social or mental， into a liberating， free world and close to Nature. This is the dream of both Miranda and the director.

Then the camera shoots the girls and the Appleyard College： everything is dominated by English Victorian traditions and a pervasive “unAustralian” atmosphere. The school building and gardens are English； the girls are rigorously disciplined like Victorian young ladies. Weir successfully uses details to create repressive atmosphere in which the cruelty and pain is underneath the orderly genteel surface of the school. The numerous shots of heavy staircases， long corridors， and severe interiors are all somber stone buildings with sharp contrast with the alluring freedoms of the world outside， the Hanging Rock. By the girls desperately longing for the landscape outside， which signifies Australia， and their rebelling against the college， which signifies Britain， Weir cleverly conveys his idea of national identity as well as the sentiment of anti-Britishness. For example， when the girls are helping each other dress， the camera focuses on a chain of girls tightening each others corset which signifies the restriction and tie binding on the girls thought and body， and in a broad sense， binding on Australia. Another scene is a blooming rosebud being flattened in a flower press， which is a vivid and harsh metaphor for the girls in the school， whose vitality and budding sexuality are suppressed by their regimented schedule and constricting clothing.

In this film， Hanging Rock and Appleyard College are two basic images in the film of sharp contrast. The Rock， （liberating force）， is not only landscape of Australia， but also a signification of Nature， of the untamed forces of Nature and Australia. It is raw， primitive， external and of 350 million years， just like Australia， the most ancient continent， while the college is temporal， out of time and place， just like the British influence. In the eyes of Mrs. Appleyard who stands for Britishness， the Rock is dangerous and viscous， while in the eyes of the girls， especially Miranda and her friends， the Rock is “… million years， just for us…！” the mysteriousness and charm symbolize another free world they long for. The girls disappearance into the Rock means Natures victory over rationality and civilization， and Australias victory over British control.

During the process of disappearing， with dreamy cinematography and music， Peter Weir gently evokes the presence of something supernatural. We can find his implied meaning easily through his deliberate use of camera， light and girls languages and actions. Here， every detail and scene deserves our attention. As soon as Miranda arrives at the Rock， she opened the birdcage， which reveals her inner hope for freedom. Miranda is otherworldly and closest to nature， is the incarnation of beauty and nature. She likes the Rock in which she can find self-identification， and by disappearing into it， she returns to where she belongs. Miranda and her two friends float like fairies through the trees， so dissolved and absorbed in Nature because their thoughts are near to it. Their vitality makes a sharp contrast with those upper-class Britishmen who stay idle and purposeless in the woods.

When they reach the circular platform of the Rock， Miranda says， “Everything begins and ends at exactly the right time and place”， which is the key sentence in this film， stressing the inevitability of the disappearing as well as the inevitability of the over of British control. Weir never explains exactly why the girls disappear， but from this sentence we can say that they just disappear at exactly the right time and place， the time when their inner passion and desire is too strong to bear the repression any more， and the place where Natures calling is irresistible. In a broader sense， the right time and place refers to 1900 when the national ethos was so strong in Australia. Then they take off their stockings， the confining trappings of civilization， and disappear into the Rock.

The second half of the film examines the enigma of the girls disappearance and the harmful effects of the incident on stodgy Appleyard College. In this part， Weir focuses on how everyone else reacts to the disappearance. Still， almost all the details are full of signification. The policemen do not enter into the Rock for they are the defenders of the restrictions and laws of the power and authority， too far away from the free， natural world. Michael and Albert cannot enter into it when they try to look for the girls， either. The surface meaning of this scene may be the Rocks sexual appeal to the girls， but in fact， it goes much deeper than that. Michael and Albert cannot enter into it not because they are male， but because they are not qualified. As an English aristocrat， the nephew of a British gentleman from upper class， Michael is too influenced by the restrictions to breakthrough， so he is far away from Nature. Even though he makes great effort， he just scratches a scrape of dress material of the girls. It is much easier for Albert， the coachman， to find the girl and save her back since there is less restriction of civilization on him. Only girls can enter into the rock because girls are purer and nearer to Nature while men are nearer to the rational world， and， as those who enjoy the privilege of the society， men are likely to defend the existing social system instead of dreaming to go to another world. In fact， not only men cannot enter into it， anyone who belongs to this reality and has no desire to get rid of the restrictions of real life cannot enter. For example， Irma entered it once， but at last is found outside of it. That means she has tried to break the restrictions， but failed and is ejected by Nature， which is mainly due to that she is not as resolute as Miranda， so at last she returns to Europe. We should not ignore the detail that both Irma and Michael have similar scars on them and the doctor describes Irmas injury quite in detail. Here Weir just wants to convey the idea that the process and struggle of breaking off the bond is painful. Irmas corset is lost， for there are more restrictions on her than Miranda and Marion， so she has to take off corset， the restriction.

In this part of the film， Weir compares Miranda to a swan for several times. First， when the policeman asks Michael “when they jump over the creek， what do you think of？” The shot immediately changes to a swan in the lake near the English party， and focuses on it for quite a while. The manners and hypocritical rituals of the upper-class English party is a contrast to the free swan. Later， Michael brings the swan back home and the last scene of the swan is that it flies away into the sky. Weir suggests that the swan， pure， graceful， beautiful and free to fly to wherever it likes， is an embodiment and incarnation of Miranda.

Picnic is not a simple mysterious film； every shot and word bears signification. Even the unimportant characters words cannot be ignored. When Tom， the servant Minnies boyfriend， asks what happened to the girls， the old gardener says： “Did you know that there are plants that … that can move？”， and illustrates by touching a leaf which suddenly closes. He also says， “Some questions got answers and others havent.”7 These words are full of suggestions： the plants， like Rock， are living things. As a gardener， he is close to Nature.

Some critics say landscape is the main theme of the film， its beauty， terror， and unusualness； but in fact， we should have a more sophisticated understanding of it. The landscape represents Nature； Nature means freedom without restriction， and therefore， has great power. The Rock is also seen as repository of specifically Australian values and challenges， as Australia is a wild land， and people on this land should be nearest to Nature. Aborigines， the Australian indigenous people， are part of Nature and the Rock is a sacred Aboriginal site. The victory of the Rock over the college is the victory of Australia over the influence of Britain， the irrational over the civilized. At the beginning of the film， the college is so prosperous that nobody knows it will decline so quickly. But just like Miranda sys： “everything begins and ends at exactly the right time and place”， no one can hold back the advancement of history and the development of Australia. Although the headmistress tried her best to prevent the decline， she failed. The effort is fruitless. The photos on the wall of her office signify the reign of Britain， and her final death signifies the end of British control. If she represents Britain， then Miranda represents essence of Australian culture， anti-authority and anti-restriction， and represents the leaders or radicals who call for Australian cultural identity.

In this film， the main theme cannot be separated distinctively. The national identity， individual identity and anti-authoritarianism are interwoven； the forces of Nature， the liberation of human heart and Australian nationalism are also interwoven. The painful aspect of growing up， the rebellion against the repressive Appleyard College and the struggle for freedom is the rebellion against the influence of GB. The self-identity， self-realization and self-awareness of the girls are just like the self- consciousness of Australia.

In the aspect of shooting techniques， Peter weir is an expert at using the camera and sound of music to create atmosphere. The camera shoots the Rock repeatedly from low angle and looking upwards to achieve the effect of power， dominance and supernature， while the College is always shot in level and in poor light. At the end of the movie， the camera slowly spans and dissolves on expensive paints and photos to indicate the decline of the British control. Miranda， with other girls， is always shot in beautiful images， bathed in sunlight and in soft-focus lenses， from low angle and though expressive use of slow-motion， which makes her looks like an angle with golden glows. The camera idealizes them in a golden haze. Their final slow-motion ascension is like ascension into heaven. The color in the bush is soft， warm， glowing and bright while in the College is dark.

In music， the film composer Bruce Smeaton combines Beethovens piano concerto， Mozarts concerto， and Zamphirs panpipes to establish some dramatic effects； for example， the use of Mozarts music as accompaniment to the British-style garden party contrasts vividly with the haunting notes of the panpipes which sinister the calling of Nature. When the girls are on the platform of the Rock， Weir takes us into a world of golden glows and gentle whispers. The silence is prolonged into eeriness， broken by insert sounds or leaf rustles.8 The panpipes replaces Beethovens piano concerto and gives us a dream-like atmosphere， intoxicating Miranda as well as audience.

3 Conclusion

On a whole， the film is an open-ended， thought-provoking story which challenges our perceptions of reality， as Weir said， “Precisely because it didnt resolve itself … Thats why I made the film.”9 We should understand this film in a symbolic， semiotic approach and bear its metaphoric significance in mind. The implied is much more than the told. Peter Weir doesnt provide any worldly explanation in the end， for his interest is in Nature， and there are so many unknown parts of Nature. Supernature is beyond explanation， just like Weir says “My interest lies in those unknown areas， not so much in finding neat ending. There are no answers， there is no ending”.10

Weir is a quite different director who always remains slightly out of the mainstream， and deals with characters that are outsiders： folks who dont quite fit in a particular environment or society. He can balance perfectly between what would be locally recognizable and what would be internationally accepted as new and exotic. In this film， without strong Australian accent， the Victorian dress and atmosphere seem to weaken the Australianness， but Weir successfully achieves his goal of Australian Nationalism through emphasizing an air of pervasive Britishness.

References

[1]Jacka， E. （1993）， “Film”， in S. Cunningham and G. Turner （Eds）， The Media in Australia， Allen & Unwin， NSW， p79.

[2] Ibid.， p183.

[3] McFarlane， B. （1987）， Australian Cinema 1970-1985， William Heinemann Australia， Victoria， p215.

[4] Banka， B.， The Big Picture Review， from the website The Big Picture DVD.Com （ Nov. 19， 1998）， p2.

[5] McFarlane， B. （1987）， p38.

[6] Chang， Y. X. （1990）， A Survey of American Literature， Nankai University Publishing House， Tianjin， pp. 144--158.

[7] McFarlane， B. （1987）， p75.

[8]Dermody， S. & Jacka E. （1988）， The Screening of Australia： Anatomy of a National Cinema， Volume 2， Currency Press Pty Ltd， Sydney， p106.

[9] Hartl， J. Review of Picnic at Hanging Rock， from the website ForeignFilms.Com， Apr. 24， 2002， p1.

[10] McFarlane， B. （1987）， p94.

作者簡介

張春燕（1973- ），女，漢，江西贛州人，澳大利亞國立大學文學博士，北京師范大學碩士導師。研究方向：澳大利亞研究，中西文化比較，文化傳播，跨文化交流。