A Challenge of Fire and Faith

 France’s Heroine On Trial

 The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) – A peasant girl leads France’s armies against English invaders.  When she is captured, the English put her on trial for heresy.  Joan becomes one of France’s greatest heroines.

Directed by dryers Carl Theodore Dreyer  

Starring Maria Falconetti 

Why I Liked It – A stunning, stylish approach to movies that we rarely see today.

It is a movie that’s going to be very difficult for most modern audiences. The two things going against it both have to do with style. First is the stylized storytelling required by the silent movies. Which modern movie viewers find rather slow. Everything has to be expressed visually, there is no dialogue to help you along with emotion or nuance. On top of that, add the stylization of the of the Danish director, Carl Th. Dreyer. Dreyer is noted for the austerity of his movies and their stately/ponderous pacing. The first 80% of the movie is rather odd. It is incredibly claustrophobic, shot almost entirely in close-ups. Each face consumes the frame and the tension that builds is profound. As the plot against Joan of Arc, the maid of Orleans, closes around her, both character and audience are held tighter and tighter until we arrive at the stake. While uncomfortable and strange, there’s a lot that is great about this movie.

Falconetti’s facial expressions are amazing to watch. She is easily the best thing about this movie. The comparison between her and almost all the men featured in this movie is stark. They are much older than her and show all of their facial flaws. Joan is young simple purity that stands in contrast to their decrepit appearance.

It’s an amazing movie in so many ways and the ending is absolutely stunning. The final 15 minutes say, basically once Joan arrives at the stake, everything becomes more and more visually astounding. My greatest fear is that the difficulties noted before will keep modern viewers from getting to that point. “The Passion of Joan of Arc” makes “Great Movie” lists on a regular basis. An audience expecting modern high tempo storytelling with lots of action and explosions will be challenged by this movie. My recommendation to everyone is to accept that challenge. This is certainly a movie that anyone fascinated by the history of film. This is a movie that you should certainly watch. At the same time it comes with obstacles. For a movie historian it is a five star movie. For the dedicated movie fan, a four. For the average movie watcher, a three.

Rating – *** Worth A Look