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    • WSR Detailed LaserDisc Review

    Picnic At Hanging Rock
    Genre:Mystery Suspense

    Reviewed In Issue 32 Of Widescreen Review® Stars:
    Rachel Roberts, Dominic Guard, Helen Morse, Jacki Weaver

    WSR Review Scores
    Picture Rating: 3.5
    Sound Rating: 2.5
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    Reference Systems
    Critics' Composite Score:
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    Supplementals

    DVD General Information
    (Studio/Distributor): Criterion Collection
    (Catalog Number): CC1545L
    (MPAA Rating): Not Rated
    (Retail Price): $39.98
    (Running Time In Minutes): 107
    (Color Type): Color
    (Chaptered/Scene Access): Yes
    (Closed Captioned): Yes
    (Theatrical Release): 1975
    (LD Release Date): 11/98
    (THX® Digitally Mastered): No

    Credits Information
    (Director): Peter Weir
    (Screenplay/Written By): Cliff Green
    (Story): Cliff Green
    (Music): Bruce Smeaton
    (Director Of Photography):
    (Production Designer): David Copping
    (Visual Effects):
    (Costume Designer):
    (Editor): Max Lemon
    (Supervising Sound Editors):
    (Re-Recording Mixers):
    (Executive Producers): Patricia Lovell
    (Co-Producers):
    (Producers): Hal McElroy & Jim McElroy

    DVD Picture Information
    (Principal Photography): Flat
    (Theatrical Aspect Ratio): 1.66:1
    (Measured LaserDisc Aspect Ratio): 1.66:1

    DVD Sound Information
    (DVD Soundtrack): Mono Sound
    (Theatrical Sound): Optical Mono
    (Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
    (Remastered Dolby Digital): No
    (Remastered DTS Digital Surround): No
    (Additional Languages):

    WSR Narrative Review
    Story Synopsis:
    Based on the novel by Joan Lindsay, the director’s cut of Picnic At Hanging Rock is a disturbing story set in Australia at the turn of the century. The girls of Mrs. Appleyard’s College are painfully chaste in their demeanor, but on this St. Valentine’s Day, an undeniable sexual tension grips the air as tightly as the corsets that are laced around their waists. At a highly proper outing, four of the girls decide to explore nearby Hanging Rock. As if lured by some mysterious voice, three of the girls climb higher and higher into the foreboding rock formation—and never return.

    LaserDisc Picture:
    The 1.66:1 LaserDisc is generally sharp and detailed with sometimes good contrast and shadow delineation. Color fidelity is nicely rendered, with natural fleshtones, rich and warm colors and deep blacks. There is minor noise apparent. Minor artifacts are apparent but, overall, the picture is easy on the eyes.

    LaserDisc Soundtrack:
    The Dolby Surround LaserDisc soundtrack is distorted. Dialogue, in particular, is excessively forward sounding with very poor spatial integration. Overall, the soundtrack is mono directed and undistinguished. The music score is the one element in which surround is present, but is mostly subtle.
    (Surround Bass Below 50Hz): No
    (Aggressive System Surround): No
    (Intense 25Hz Bass): No
    (Deep Bass Challenging): No
    (Aggressive 0.1 LFE):
    (Holosonic Soundfield): No
    (Aggressive Split Surround): No
    (Center Back Surround Imaging): No
    (Directionalized Dialogue): No
    Superb Sound Effects Recording Quality:
    Superb Music Score Recording Quality:
    		 No
    Superb Special Visual Effects Quality:
    		 No
    Superb Color Fidelity:
    		 No
    Superb Cinematography:
    		 -
    Reference LaserDisc:
    		 No
    Collector Edition:
    		 No
    DVD To LaserDisc Comparison:
    The dual-layer DVD is not anamorphic, and when viewed in component video and compared to the LaserDisc, exhibits slightly finer detail and more definition. Both versions are generally sharp and detailed with sometimes good contrast and shadow delineation. Color fidelity is nicely rendered, with natural fleshtones, rich and warm colors and deep blacks. There is minor noise apparent, though the DVD is more solid. Minor artifacts are apparent but, overall, the picture is easy on the eyes. The aspect ratio is 1.66:1 on both versions. The remastered DVD discrete soundtrack encoded in Dolby® Digital sounds virtually identical to the Dolby Surround LaserDisc soundtrack encoded in matrix PCM, despite apparent electronic alterations in the Dolby Digital surround channels. Bass has been mixed to the .1 LFE so the soundtrack could be credited as “5.1,” but there is no effective enhancement that betters the bass track on the PCM LaserDisc. The sound is distorted overall. Dialogue, in particular, is excessively forward sounding with very poor spatial integration. Overall, the soundtrack is mono directed and undistinguished. The music score is the one element in which surround is present, but is mostly subtle.