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The Passion of Joan of Arc

  • ️Tue Jan 29 2013

The Passion of Joan of Arc (Film)

The Passion of Joan of Arc (La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc) is a classic French silent film from 1928, directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer. Generally regarded as one of the greatest films ever made (to the point of being named the ninth greatest film of all time in the 2012 Sight & Sound Critics' Poll), as well as considered to have one of the greatest filmed performances ever, given by Maria Falconetti in the title role.note 

In 1431, Joan of Arc is put on trial by the English. They attempt to get her to back down from her claims of holy visions. She refuses and is eventually burned at the stake. The film's plotline is highly conventional, being adapted straight from the actual records of Joan of Arc's trial and essentially serving as a highly condensed version of the real event. The film's real strengths come from Dreyer's excellent direction, Falconetti's performance, and the fact that you'll barely be able to see either of those things through all of your tears.

Famously, this film (specifically, a print of Dreyer's final cut) survived only due to one single copy, which was found in a closet in a Norwegian insane asylum. How strange is that?

This film provides examples of:

  • Artistic License – History: It is clear that Dreyer did a lot of research on Joan of Arc's trial, even basing the script on the original trial transcripts. However, in real life, there was no rioting after the burning of Joan of Arc. That said, the words that incite the riot, "You have burned a saint!", are derived from John Tressart, the secretary to King Henry VI. Tressart, after watching the execution, left the scene weeping and full of remorse, and he exclaimed: "We are all lost; we have burned a saint!"
  • Beauty Equals Goodness: Joan is very pretty in an innocent sort of way, while her tormentors are often downright repulsive.
  • Being Good Sucks: Boy, does it ever.
  • Big Bad: The Bishop of Beauvais, Hanging Judge of Joan's trial.
  • Book Dumb: Joan can't read, and needs help signing her "confession." She's also uneducated in theological minutia, which, in both real life and the film, leads to her conviction.
  • Boyish Short Hair: Joan has her hair cut short. It then gets cropped to stubble later on.
  • Bury Me Not on the Lone Prairie: Joan pleads for her body to be buried on consecrated ground. In real life, her ashes were thrown in a river.
  • Burn the Witch!: Joan's ultimate fate.
  • Break the Cutie: Joan is put through the wringer throughout the entirety of the trial, from facing trumped-up charges of heresy to her eventual burning at the stake.
  • Corrupt Church: The ecclesiastical court in Rouen, headed by Bishop Pierre Cauchon of Beauvais, is tasked with trying Joan of Arc of heresy. However, as the court is in league with the English, it is not interested in determining whether these charges are true but rather seeking something to justify giving a guilty verdict. Even the priests who take a more compassionate approach to Joan still side with the court.
  • Disturbed Doves: Joan watches the birds fly off the church roof as she is burned.
  • Doomed Moral Victor: Joan of Arc, burned at the stake. That said, she has clearly won the PR battle, seeing as how a peasant in the crowd screams "You have burned a saint!" followed by a riot. And, of course, everyone watching the movie would have known that not all that long after Joan was executed, the English were driven out of France for good. Further, a rehabilitation trial investigated the original trial to see if it was dealt out justly and in accordance with ecclesiastical laws; it concluded that it was invalid due to improper procedures, deceit, and fraud, and it nullified Joan's sentence.
  • Dutch Angle: Used by Dreyer several times in the film, usually to give the judges a more sinister appearance.
  • Eye Take: At several points during the trial, Joan's eyes widen like this as a sign of surprise or horror.
  • Face Death with Dignity: Joan's attitude towards being burned.
  • Faint in Shock: Joan faints when shown the brutal torture instruments intended to extract her confession.
  • Foregone Conclusion: Just about anyone who at least has a passing familiarity with Joan of Arc's life knows exactly how it'll end for her.
  • Good Cop/Bad Cop: In this case, good cleric, bad cleric, but the same principle applies.
  • Good Eyes, Evil Eyes: Joan has shiny, beautiful gray eyes throughout the entire film. On the other hand, some of the priests in the court in Rouen have very intense gazes.
  • Good Is Impotent: Joan is powerless to prevent her fate throughout the film.
  • Good Shepherd: For a given definition of "good," as they are a part of the court in Rouen, but a couple of priests are more compassionate towards Joan of Arc and try to help her throughout the trial.
  • The Hero Dies: Joan is burned at the stake.
  • High-Pressure Blood: A fountain of blood coming from the puncture wound on Joan's arm. It was a real wound, though the arm belonged to a stand-in, not Maria Falconetti.
  • Jeanne d'Archétype: Joan of Arc is the Ur-Example, but this film, by itself, does not show the trope. Instead, it's more like a Deconstruction Played for Drama — after breaking the laws of man in the name of God, the brilliant and brave visionary girl is captured by the enemy, nearly broken by interrogation, and finally, brutally executed.
  • Kangaroo Court: The ecclesiastical court in Rouen, which is in league with the English, is only interested in finding something to justify convicting Joan of Arc of heresy, not if the charges are true. In real life, a rehabilitation trial confirmed that the verdict was unjustly given, and the entire trial flew in the face of ecclesiastical laws.
  • Kill the Cutie: Joan's death.
  • The Late Middle Ages: The movie is set in 1431, during the Hundred Years War.
  • Lima Syndrome: Ultimately, it was not enough to save Joan's life, but a number of priests who are a part of the court in Rouen take a more compassionate approach towards her.
  • Locked in the Dungeon: Joan's imprisonment.
  • Messianic Archetype: The movie is The Passion of Joan of Arc for a reason. Many scenes in the film echo The Bible, from a confrontation with religious authorities (in this case, a French ecclesiastical court that is allied with the English) to the English soldiers dressing Joan in a "thorny crown."
  • Miscarriage of Justice: Joan of Arc is convicted and executed for heresy. Indeed, the peasants realize this after she gets executed, as they riot seconds after.
  • Mission from God: What Joan believes herself to be on.
  • Not So Stoic: Even one of the guards weeps to see Joan burned.
  • Ominous Latin Chanting: Richard Einhorn's Voices of Light soundtrack, composed for the movie in 1994 and often played with it in later showings (and included on home video releases) is largely comprised of Latin quotes from the Bible and medieval mystics. The rest is from medieval French poetry and the letters of Joan of Arc.
  • Passion Play: A play on this, focusing on the death of Joan of Arc instead of Jesus.
  • Public Execution: Joan of Arc was publicly burned at the stake for the trumped-up charges of heresy; it quickly led to full-scale rioting.
  • Prayer Pose: Joan, upon receiving communion.
  • Prone to Tears: Joan herself. She cries virtually every time she's given a closeup.
  • Security Cling: Not quite a cling, but Joan tries to hold the hand of a priest while suffering a fever. He pulls it away.
  • Shamed by a Mob: The people witnessing Joan's execution weep in sympathy, and a riot breaks out when one peasant shouts "You have burned a saint!"
  • Shown Their Work: The dialogue is all derived from the court records of Joan of Arc's trial.
  • Single Tear: One of the clerics cries a single tear when Joan recants her confession, as he knows it will lead to her death.
  • Spiteful Spit: One of the church officials spits on Joan during her trial.
  • Sweet Polly Oliver: Joan herself, who wears men's clothes, though it is not so much to pass as a man as for practical reasons. The church court grills her about it.
  • Tears of Fear: It is nearly constant on Joan's part during the movie.
  • Tears of Remorse: Joan, after signing her confession, which she then recants.
  • Traumatic Haircut: Joan's hair is cropped to stubble on-camera. It counts as a real-life example, too, as Falconetti apparently begged Dreyer not to have to do it.
  • Villain Respect: By the end, it is clear that some of the clergy are impressed with her courage and feel at least some sympathy for her.
  • Waif Prophet: Joan herself.
  • The X of Y: The Passion of Joan of Arc.
  • You Can't Go Home Again: It's not stated in the dialogue — it's all in Joan's face when the priest asks her who taught her how to say her prayers, and she answers, "My mother."