Q:Build a movie plot around this: Whose body was found at the base of Hanging Rock? Mrs Appleyard
A:
The film begins in a (fictional) English girls' school in the Australian bush on February 14, 1900. The school is headed by Mrs. Appleyard (Rachel Roberts), an indomitable and unbending figure of authority. Her staff include the remote mathematics mistress Miss Greta McCraw (Vivean Gray), said to have a 'masculine' intellect; the young and beautiful Mademoiselle de Portiers (Helen Morse) who teaches French and deportment, and the jittery Miss Lumley (Kirsty Child), who is anxious to please Mrs. Appleyard.Amid lingering images of white-clad girls in whispering voices delighting in Valentine's cards, the character of Miranda (Anne-Louise Lambert) and her friend and admirer, Sara (Margaret Nelson) are introduced. Miranda's circle of friends includes Irma (Karen Robson), Marion (Jane Vallis), Rosamund (Ingrid Mason). Sara's affection for Miranda clearly stems from a deep romantic crush. Another pupil, Edith (Christine Schuler) hovers on the edge of Miranda's circle, desperate for acceptance. Sara, an orphan who is a kind of charity pupil, is disliked by Mrs. Appleyard, and is not allowed to join the outing, ostensibly because she has not memorized an assigned poem. Miranda shows worry that Sara dotes on her too much in which she tells Sara that she "won't be here much longer" (suggesting a premonition of her disappearance). The party leaves leaving behind Mrs. Appleyard and Sara.The girls ride to Hanging Rock, a 500-foot tall volcanic rock formation about 11 km northeast of the school. Mlle. de Portiers and Miss McCraw are the supervisors. Mr. Hussey drives the girls in his wagon on the trip to the formation. For some odd reason, everyone's timepiece and wristwatch stops at 12 noon when they arrive. Miranda cuts a cake in honor of St. Valentine and the party relaxes in the warm shade.Marion asks permission to take Miranda and Irma for an excursion on the rock and is accompanied by Edith. Their departure is witnessed by a fascinated young Englishman who attempts to follow them, but soon breaks away. After a brief...