Cinema
The Passion of Joan of Arc
La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc
Carl Th. Dreyer · 1928
Synopsis
In 1431, in the castle of Rouen, Joan's trial opens before a Church tribunal in the service of the English occupier. Chained and without support, the young woman must answer judges determined to condemn her, who press her with questions and multiply the pressures to make her yield. The camera hardly leaves the faces, Joan's, tormented and sincere, and those of the churchmen who question her.
Context
A French production of the Société générale des films, the film was shown in Copenhagen in April 1928, then in Paris on the following 25 October. The screenplay draws on the transcripts of the trial. The religious authorities demanded cuts before the Paris release. The original negative later disappeared in a fire in Berlin, and for a long time only altered versions were seen, until a complete copy was found in 1981 in a Norwegian psychiatric hospital.
Who it is for
Silent, almost entirely in close-ups; its running time varies with the projection speed chosen, from eighty minutes to more than two hours.
Prizes and reception
Hailed by the Paris press on its release; Renée Falconetti's performance is considered one of the most powerful of the silent era.
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