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I have lots to say about today’s special @enchantedbyfilm @_CarolMorley #FridayFilmClub double bill. So, a thread... 1/
The first time I saw The Falling there were a couple of things that immediately reminded me of Picnic At Hanging Rock: the opening shots all dreamy greenery; schoolgirls sitting under umbrellas on a grassy bank... 2/
... the dark haired girl half in love with her blonde friend, who is lost and becomes to represent a kind of angel for all of them. (Also made me think of Heavenly Creatures, obv) 3/
And: the significance of the rock in Picnic, the oak tree in The Falling. The grand school building, the heads’ offices with the photos on the wall. Beehive hair. Middle aged women falling apart through alcohol/agoraphobia. The swans. 4/
The way the heads each rehearse their speeches, & the problems posed to each of them by Sarah/ Lydia. The teacher at the piano, playing on to try to override what they see as showing off. The art teacher, the French mistress, closer in age & understanding to the girls. 6/
Poetry, throughout. And then the detention where the girls are asked to learn lines - in Picnic, Sarah is told to learn a poem but asks if she can recite one she wrote instead, and then when Abi and Lydia are asked to learn a recipe I loved this response: 7/
Mostly I love the way each film deals with the gap between what can been understood or explained by science, and the power of unseen forces, hidden energy. The egg, the occult, the lava under the rock. 6/
And each film is itself a mystery. We feel things, we see layers of meaning, but they remain unreal, like dreams. And I find more in each one each time I watch them. I LOVE THEM! And, despite all I’ve said above they are totally different. 8/
Oh dear, it looks like my numbering went totally wrong. I can only apologise. Anyway that’s all I have to say on the matter, for now. 9? 10?? / the end !