Customer Reviews

The Passion of Joan of Arc (Full Screen)

5 star:		(90)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Spellbinding performance by Maria Falconetti!!! Very powerful film - beautifully directed and staged. New music soundtrack adds to the overall presentation. Highly recommended!!!

"The Passion of Joan of Arc" is a silent film in black and white, directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer (1889-1968). It is not exactly the kind of movie I usually rent, but it is excellent, and I certainly don't regret having watched it.

The plot is based on the preserved transcripts of Joan of Arc's 1431 trial, in which she was accused of being under the influence of the devil, and condemned to die. Even though this film doesn't have colors, and despite the fact you cannot hear what the characters say, it is very easy to be enthralled by the way in which Dreyer tells this story. It is a real event, and he reenacts it for us.

This film is heartwrenching, but also powerful, and extremely well-made. In my opinion, "The Passion of Joan of Arc" is a classic you simply must see, even if you don't generally watch silent movies. After all, if you join a genius like Dreyer and someone with the talent and expressive face of the actress that plays Joan (Maria Falconetti), why do they need words for?

Belen Alcat

I may not be religious, but I can tell a masterpiece of filmmaking when I see one. This movie is certainly that!

Just because this is a silent film should be no reason for anybody to suspect that the pace of this film is slow and boring, quite the opposite. The film builds with great suspense which is almost unbroken throughout, making what could have been routine and uninteresting conversations in the hands of another director glow with life as he shows us in detail the faces, personalities, and motivations of the people who judge Joan of Arc; he gives us whispered words passed between the characters, the indignation on their faces when their will is refused, even the quiet, heartbreaking regret of one of the priests who condemns her, which comes much too late to be of any use. All this is done with incredibly imaginative camera angles and wonderful pacing.

The composer of the music that goes with this film deserves as much credit as the director of TPoJoA, which is saying a lot! The orchestral + voices score to the movie is powerful, fascinating, and would be interesting to listen to on its own; combine it with the movie and the effect is astounding; it perfectly captures every mood shown in the movie, amplifying them twofold.

The final scene in the movie was one of the most horrific scenes I've ever seen in a movie, rivaling the scene in Elem Klimov's "Come and See" (probably the most powerful war movie to come out of the USSR) where an entire Belorussian village is burnt to the ground with all of the inhabitants still inside.

Certainly a movie that must be seen to be believed. It will have less significance for you if you are not religious, but all the same it should be seen. You will not be bored, neither by the movie nor by the accompanying score.

Technically, this is a very good restoration; I only noticed very minor blemishes once or twice during the entire length of the film; the picture was clear otherwise. It does seem that it runs a little too fast at times, probably because the score was not long enough for it to run at a normal tempo. I think that this faster speed generally makes the movie more interesting to watch, especially for a modern audience, though there are times when it is really noticeable (when we see close-ups of Joan's face for example). Still, this is not often enough to spoil the film.

This review is for the Criterion Collection DVD edition of the film

This movie is one of the most well known classics of Europe. The 2nd original print, long thought to be lost to fire, was miraculously found in the closet of a mental hospital in Norway in 1981. The 1st original was burned though.

The recent film, "Passion of the Christ" was not the only "passion" film to generate controversy. This film was thought to be anti-England due to its protrayal of their treatment to Joan of Arc. The French were also upset that a non-French and non-Catholic man directed the film. The film's dialoge (by intertitles as it is a silent film) is based on actual transcripts of Joan's trial which have managed to survive also. The film is said to be very moving for some people just like Gibson's "Passion of the Christ." Not being Catholic, I am not sure of what many of the elements of either film may refer to.

The DVD has numerous special features as always.

Audio commentary by Dryer scholar Casper Tybjerg of Copenhagen University (he has a thick Danish accent that is very nice)
Optional soundtrack for Richard Einhorn's "Voices of Light" (a musical piece inspired by the film)alsong with an essay about the music and a libretto booklet.
Production design archive
History of the many different cuts and alternat versions of the film
Audio-only interview with the star's daughter, Hélène Falconetti.

The FILM is a masterpiece, no doubt at all.
But few people comment anything about the atrocities and
depraved soul of the Catholic Christians who used to burn so
many beautiful souls. It is amazing that "EVEN NOW" such a
perverse institution as the Catholic Church still exists.
There is nothing more ANTI-CHRISTIAN than the Catholic Church.
They burnt Joan of Arc, as they did many "true christians" during the crusades and the inquisitions.
This FILM make one think a lot! That's what films should do on oneself: teach realities and lessons worth learning.

About 5-10 years ago, I asked my mother (then 70 yrs old or so) what the best movie she'd ever seen was. She said Carl Dryer's Joan of Arc, which then had not yet been re-released. When I told a film lover this, he said "oh, that was EASY." Intrigued I went to see the movie at Avery Fisher Hall at the new release with Einhorn's score. Well, I was speechless. It was nothing I expected it to be. And, as it happens, not what Carl Dryer expected either! He had to create it from rejected footage when the original version was destroyed in a fire. Proof of his genius, now one can't even imagine another version. With all of these close-ups that were originally rejected, could we still today be so amazed by it? Even up close, Maria Falconetti's performance is the most humble I have ever seen in my life. The script is just a court proceeding, which I believe was from the original court transcripts. Seeing the film, witnessing the ridiculous trial, and experiencing Maria Falconetti's soul, I went away feeling sad for the human race.

MY CURRENT RATINGS:
10/10 Movie: The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)

The Passion of Joan of Arc (Dreyer 1928)

Once thought lost to the world, the film was pieced together in the 1980s from a Danish copy found miraculously in a mental hospital closet.

The introduction on the Criterion DVD tells us this. By film's end, you realize just what a blessing it is that this most beautifully crafted work of art, history and faith was not lost to us all.

I began my first viewing without the later-created score. Something told me to go ahead and add the inspired sounds, as they were approved and revered enough to accompany this most definitive copy of the piece.

From the second she comes on screen, Jeanne (Maria Falconetti) appears Divinely informed, set apart from her persecutors. The brilliance of Falconetti's performance cannot be overstated. Her eyes share a myriad of emotions in each frame, more than a thousand encyclopedias could convey.

I often say there are too many words in films today. I look to classics to find my respite. Silent films are the best vessels for such a cinefile.

The story of St. Joan of Arc is familiar to most today. We've seen everything from picture books to MTV videos imitating the final, passionate days of Her existence. She is somewhat a cult icon for young feminists, though I doubt this was Her purpose.

Whether you take Jeanne's passion as a believer, or a sympathetic, or a skeptic impressed by her self confidence in what she knew as truth, it is impossible to not love a woman so steadfast. One cannot imagine the horror behind those now famous eyes conveying Jeanne's final days here.

I admit being moved to tears on many occasions during this first viewing.

The framing was so emotional, showing angles that impart such immediate recognition of fear, anguish, faith that one can be expected to cry merely for the level of art.

The editing was also vastly fraught with feeling. During one of the film's most frenetic sequences, the pace quickens with a fervor of impending fright, and we are one with our protagonist.

One might think with all these incredible kudos, the film would fail somewhere. It cannot contain such a complete package of filmic greatness at such an early stage of the medium?

It can and does. Visual symbolism is resplendent. From a cross hidden as the window bars to a flock of birds lighting on the steeple, to a babe suckling its mother's milk as stark contrast to the events surrounding it.

Truly the most remarkable, crafted, and moving piece of cinema I have ever seen, heard or experienced.

10/10 and beyond. Every film should rise to the level of The Passion of Joan of Arc.

one reads all too frequently a tagline like ' the greatest film of all time'.
like many, i read of this film for years before ever seeing it.
todd browning's freaks was also a film one read of for years before it became readily available.
the difference in finally encountering the two films is remarkable.
while brownings freaks is an essential film to see, it doesn't quite live up to it's expectations, mainly because of the badly stilted dialogue.
it undoubtedly would have been better as a silent film.
however, dreyer's passion leaves you no such dissapointment.
it is an unbelieveable work of art and ranks with chaplin's city lights as the most remarkable achievement in silent film.
and it is possibly the greatest film ever made and,for once, this is not an outrageous or exaggerated statement.
virtually, everything about it works. the only weakness lies in the titles which can be obtrusive. but,then, all films are flawed, of course.
it is fairly well known that dreyer wanted desparately to film the subject of christ and the passion.
chaplin too had wanted to play christ and said he was the perfect actor to do so as he was jewish by birth, an aetheist by choice, and a pantomimist.
he was probabaly right.
objectivity (like in the example of passolini's gospel according to st matthew)can actually lead to a stronger, more honest work of art.
mel gibson's recent proselytizing effort is the quintessential example of how having a personal agenda can actually lead to a monstrousely horrifying expression.
gibson's passion leaves the senses reeling from the onslaught of sadistic images.
not so here.
while the tragedy which befell joan is of unparamount dimensions,
our emotions and heart yearn during the course of the film without experiencing the type of nauseousness we feel from encontering gibson's unrelenting assault of macho torture.
here we experience the lessons of the sermon on the mount, the our father, the hail mary and the passion. and this is the type of balance we desperately need in a film of this nature.
oddly enough, a few years ago a friend of mine had never read the gopels and i encoraged her to read the gospel of john.
her honest reaction (a reaction without preconcieved notions) was that christ possessed an honest, effiminate, nurturing character.
how ironic then that dreyer could give us a female martyr and move us in a way that the macho gibson could not.

This 1928 film is a masterpiece, pure and simple. It grabs the viewer and won't let go, thanks to the singular vision of Carl Dreyer and the remarkable performance of every one of his cast members--Renee Falconetti most notably, who was born to play Joan of Arc. It's almost as if Dreyer's camera had been present to record Joan's actual trial and execution.
"The Passion of Joan of Arc" truly does justice to the amazing story of a pious and sincere child at the mercy of foolish hypocritical "inquisitors." That this marvelous film came very close to being lost forever only makes it more cherished. To all this, add the perfect score--written by American composer Richard Einhorn half a century later--and what a rare treasure this "Passion" is!

Wow i was totally amazed by this film. After watching it in a class,I was totally impressed with it. After only seeing it twice I am convinced that The Passion Of Joan Of Arc is one of the greatest silent films ever made. Director Theo Dreyer broke alot of conventions with this film. First he used mainly close ups to convey the story, it translates it beautifully. Second is the performance by Renee Falconetti often considered and rightfully so one of the best performances ever put on film. It is easy to see why She has such great power, Last is the oratorio written by composer Richard Einhorn entitled voices of light. This has to be the most perfect marriage of movie and music.