La passion de Jeanne d'Arc (1928)

User Rating:

8.1/10   

Director:

Carl Theodor Dreyer

Writers:

Joseph Delteil (writer)
Carl Theodor Dreyer (writer)

Release Date:

21 April 1928 (Denmark)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | History

Plot:

A chronicle of the trial of Jeanne d'Arc on charges of heresy, and the efforts of her ecclesiastical jurists to force Jeanne to recant her claims of holy visions.

Plot Keywords:

Judge | Trial | Torture Chamber | Suffering | Heresy

Cast

Maria Falconetti	...	Jeanne d'Arc (as Melle Falconetti)
Eugene Silvain	...	Évêque Pierre Cauchon (Bishop Pierre Cauchon) (as Eugène Silvain)
André Berley	...	Jean d'Estivet
Maurice Schutz	...	Nicolas Loyseleur
Antonin Artaud	...	Jean Massieu
Michel Simon	...	Jean Lemaître
Jean d'Yd	...	Guillaume Evrard
Louis Ravet	...	Jean Beaupère (as Ravet)
Armand Lurville	...	Juge (Judge) (as André Lurville)
Jacques Arnna	...	Juge (Judge)
Alexandre Mihalesco	...	Juge (Judge)
Léon Larive	...	Juge (Judge)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jean Aymé	...	Juge (Judge) (uncredited)
Gilbert Dacheux	...	Juge (Judge) (uncredited)
Gilbert Dalleu	...	Jean Lemaître (uncredited)
Paul Delauzac	...	Martin Ladvenu (uncredited)
Fournez-Goffard	...	Juge (Judge) (uncredited)
Henri Gaultier	...	Juge (Judge) (uncredited)
Paul Jorge	...	Juge (Judge) (uncredited)
Henri Maillard	...	Juge (Judge) (uncredited)
Raymond Narlay	...	Juge (Judge) (uncredited)

Directed by
Carl Theodor Dreyer		(as Carl Th. Dreyer)

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Joseph Delteil		writer
Carl Theodor Dreyer		writer

Original Music by
Jesper Kyd		(2007 New Score)
Ole Schmidt		(1982)

Cinematography by
Rudolph Maté

Film Editing by
Marguerite Beaugé		(uncredited)
Carl Theodor Dreyer		(uncredited)

Set Decoration by
Jean Hugo		(settings)
Hermann Warm		(settings)

Costume Design by
Valentine Hugo

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Ralph Holm	....	assistant director
Paul La Cour	....	assistant director

Other crew
Pierre Champion	....	historial advisor
Carl Theodor Dreyer	....	title designer (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Société générale des films

Distributors

• Gaumont (1928) (France) (theatrical)
• Artificial Eye (2003) (UK) (theatrical) (subtitled) (re-release)
• Capitol Film Exchange (1933) (USA) (theatrical) (states rights system)
• Criterion Collection, The (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Janus Films (????) (USA) (theatrical)
• Kinokuniya (2005) (Japan) (DVD) (special edition) (original Denmark version)
• LS Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• M.J. Gourland (1929) (USA) (theatrical)
• Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) (1978) (USA) (TV) (network premiere)
• Sherlock Home Video (2006) (Spain) (DVD)
• Video Images (1991) (USA) (VHS)
• Video Yesteryear (1991) (USA) (VHS)

Also Known As:

The Passion of Joan of Arc (USA)
La pasión de Juana de Arco (Argentina) (Spain) [es]
A Paixão de Joana d'Arc (Portugal) [pt]
Die Passion der Jeanne d'Arc (Germany) [de]
Die Passion der Jungfrau von Orléans (Germany) [de]
En kvinnas martyrium (Finland: Swedish title) [sv]
Jeanne d'Arc's Lidelse og Dod. (Denmark) [da]
Jeanne d'Arcin kärsimys (Finland) [fi]
Johanna von Orléans (Austria) [de]
La passione di Giovanna d'Arco (Italy) [it]
Meczenstwo Joanny d'Arc (Poland) [pl]
Sabakaruru Jannu (Japan) [ja]

Runtime:

110 min | France:88 min (1952 re-release) | USA:114 min | 82 min (restored DVD version) (24 fps) | Denmark:96 min

Country:

France

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Certification:

Finland:K-12 (1988) | Spain:13 | South Korea:12 | Finland:K-16 (1954) | Norway:16 (1928) | Sweden:15 | UK:PG (2003 re-rating) | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Boulogne-Billancourt, Hauts-de-Seine, France

Company:

Société générale des films

Trivia:

Much of the project's budget was reserved for the expensive sets, although, Dreyer used so many close-ups, very little of the actual sets are seen.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: In the 15th century, a priest can be seen wearing a Jesuit robe. The Jesuit order was founded in the 16th century.

Quotes:

Juge: Has God promised you things?
Jeanne d'Arc: That has nothing to do with this trial!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Wie de Waarheid Zegt Moet Dood (1981)

Soundtrack:

Voices of Light

When viewing it we look at it as looking in a mirror.

What can one say about this work of art that has not been said many times before by those far better qualified to explain both it's importance and place as cinema and art? I shall not comment on the greatness of the film's technical achievements; the stunning cinematography, the production design, the brilliance of the screenplay based on actual transcripts from the trial, or the perfection of Mr. Dreyer's direction. The performance of Falconetti as Jeanne d' Arc has a profundity and depth far beyond my ability to illuminate. I suppose the best I can hope to do is to share my feelings, however inadequately expressed, of the effect it had on me. To say that it may be the greatest film ever made is to sound both obvious and trite. That a work of such beauty and simplicity, made seventy-six years ago can still have the power to move audiences in an era of multi-million dollar, hi-tech, bombastic over-wrought cinematic drivel is in itself a testament to the vision and genius of Carl Theodor Dreyer, Maria Falconetti and their collaborators. It is nourishment for those that hunger for something more in cinema, a feast for the soul. It is a reminder that film can indeed be art, and this film like all great works of art, lifts and transports us from the routine of our work-a-day lives to enable us, if only for a moment to experience the sublime. When viewing it we look at it as looking in a mirror. That is to say we look into ourselves. We question ourselves as to our own beliefs, or the lack thereof and the strength of spirit that enables an individual to endure the unendurable. Viewing it is a profound experience the nature of which for myself is transcendent rather than religious, because I am not in the least a religious person. Transcendent because it evokes emotions and thoughts that I cannot wholly account for, or adequately explain.

"La Passion of Jeanne d'Arc" is stark, radiant, exalted, simple, (but never simplistic), and ultimately sublime. The rest is silence.