A spare and elegant film, Song Il-gon's The Picnic will stay with you long after seeing it. (Neither description so far really does it justice. Vice-4's is good, but Christopher Ottinger's is clearly for a different film.)
The film packs an emotional punch. None of the characters is simplified in the least. How refreshing to see the love (however misguided) behind what can only be described as a horrible act.
Thomas Vinterberg was the Jury Chair when this film won at Cannes, and it is his film Celebration that this most reminds me of in terms of emotional weight, and the conflicted nature of the characters. (The Picnic is not a Dogme 95 film, however. It was shot on 35mm, and has fairly high production values.)
The film packs an emotional punch. None of the characters is simplified in the least. How refreshing to see the love (however misguided) behind what can only be described as a horrible act.
Thomas Vinterberg was the Jury Chair when this film won at Cannes, and it is his film Celebration that this most reminds me of in terms of emotional weight, and the conflicted nature of the characters. (The Picnic is not a Dogme 95 film, however. It was shot on 35mm, and has fairly high production values.)
