Joan, we hardly know ya...

Rating: 4/10 (4 February 2001)

TPOJOA. What can I say. I saw this movie back in the summer of 1990 and I hate to sound like one of those people that always say a movie is boring unless there are lots of special effects, or predictable action every ten minutes, or if it was made before 1990. But I'm not going to say it's boring - it's not -, to me it's something else: It's DEPRESSING!
I remember reading all the positive write ups about this film before I saw it. I must've looked for it for probably 5 years before I finally found it and rented it from an out of state video distributor. I can't believe someone could make a depressing silent film, but they did! When it was over I couldn't wait to mail it back to the video distributor. I can't imagine any part of a sunny day that I would want to give up to see this movie. Or any part of a rainy day for that matter.
And I'm not saying the people who like this movie are depressed individuals, on the contrary I admire them for taking the initiative to see and appreciate a "difficult" film like this.
Don't get me wrong, it's a extremely well made film and some of my favorite films can be considered to be "sad films", but sad can be surrounded by beauty (Read: "It's a sad and beautiful world"), but depressing is beyond sad, it's hopelessness, there isn't any beauty around that.
See the odd camera angle as the English soldier reaches back for his weapons to be later used to beat the heck out of the peasants who support Joan. See the English soldiers beat the heck out of the charging peasants. See the birds fly from the trees as Joan is about to burn. Hear the hectic staccato organ music as she burns.
It's also amazing but after seeing this film I have less respect for Joan than before. Is she truly a Saint? I don't know this film doesn't help. And to make matters worse, after I viewed this film I went to bed and had the strangest nightmare I've ever had.
There is one interesting line in the film. As one of the peasants in the film says as they're about to torch Joan: "If they're not crucifying 'em, they're burning 'em!"
If you want to see something a little more uplifting by Carl Dreyer I recommend you check out "Ordet" (1955) instead. It's a much better movie and it's not depressing, just puzzling. I finally saw it about 3 months ago and I didn't have any bad dreams after viewing it!
If you want to see another depressing film like this one then you may want to check out "The Devils" (1971). It has sound, is in color and leaves one with the same empty wasted feeling at the end!