Product: The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (Region 2) (1999)
Rating: 4.0
Joan ...
The story of Joan of Arc is a myth and legend beyond religious belief and war stories, it is a true triumph of the human spirit. Anything you set your mind to can be accomplished no matter how strange or outlandish it may be. And Joan did it, to be glorified for all eternity for her bravery. This movie came under some flack for some overdramatics and a bit of choppy story flow, but it fleshed out Joan for who she really was and how she was used as well as abused by the higher powers of heaven and earth.Milla Jovovich plays Joan, a simple, illiterate peasent girl who came from a farming town in Lorrain, France out of no where. In this movie, often ignored by other biographies or cinematic undertakings, we see how she was affected by the toils of war when her sister is murdered by English soldiers. We also see how with a child's innocence she loves God and wants nothing but to find joy within going to mass and prayer. Perhaps it is because of these reasons that she has her first visions as a young girl, innocent of the outside world and looking to the church for answers. At age 19, she leaves her hometown to see the Daulphaine of France, played with the dignity and hauting ability that only John Malcovich can portray. She seeks an audience with him to tell him that she has been chosen by God to lead his army against the English in the 100 Years War and see him rightly crowned as the King of France.It has often been debated why it was that Charles believed Joan, and this movie offers some insights to more practical reasons rather than a true miracle. Heavily influenced by his mother in law, played with kind of a creepy, witchlike appeal by Faye Dunaway, Charles has always doubted himself. There was always a question about his lineage and his right to rule. There was also a myth about a maid from Lorrain that was sent by God to lead France into victory. She says it is what simple people believe; and, what the simple people believe is what will give him strength and power. Also, according to myth and legend, when Joan was presented in the court to Charles, he had an impostor sit upon his throne. If the maid Joan was truly of God, then she would pick him out of a crowd as the true Dauphaine. Sure enough, Joan chooses correctly. Joan and Charles would retreat into another room for a private conversation that only the two of them would witness. Charles would emerge, according to witnesses, excited and amazed. Did Joan perform a miracle? Rather, Joan reassures him that she believed enough in him that he should be the true king of France. Joan is given her army, and they would march onto victory.The tide quickly turns for Joan after Charles is crowned. The church as well as the crown are fearful of the power Joan has over the people and her inflating ego. What would she attempt next? They begin to clamp down on her, and as her next war attempts would result in a disasterous failure, she is jailed and found guilty of being a heratic. Joan is burned at the stake for her crimes. Some say that her heart, as it was pure, did not burn. Hundreds of years later, she was canonized as a saint.What is the morale of the story? There are hundreds if not thousands of morales. Perhaps the most telling of situations is when Joan, in her final days behind bars, is confronted by Dustin Hoffman, her own doubts. He asks her what her sins have been and how she got into this place. Her sins were pride and vanity. Maybe she didn't really hear the voice of God. Maybe she was just a nutcase who happened to be in the right place at the right time. Maybe she was the fall guy for a botched military movement, a weak king, or a patriarchal society. Whatever the reason, Joan was a hero.