Product: The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (Region 2) (1999)
Rating: 4.0
Joan of Arc becomes action movie star...
First of all, I don't remember much of what I learned about Joan of Arc in school. And after seeing this movie I don't feel like I know that much more. Actually some bells are ringing in the back of my head, indicating that some of the elements aren't historically correct. Well, so some liberties have been taken in the storytelling, but I was still entertained, and that is usually the point in seeing a movie by Luc Besson.This version of the story of the famous warrior saint (or was she just crazy?) is definitely the most colourful one ever made. Milla Jovovich generally does a good job playing the part of Joan. Sometimes she's absolutely brilliant, but other times the performance is not that convincing. I take it that this is because of her having to work with Besson right after their divorce. But speculations aside, the movie still turned out pretty great. Generally the acting is quite superb, and the visuals are gorgeous, something which has become a trademark of Besson. But like other postmodernistic directors, he seems to focus more on the packaging than the content. The script never really goes in-depth with the internal struggle of Joan of Arc, and might be more suited for a regular action movie.Still the visuals and the acting make the film worthwhile, but if you want to see a historically accurate version of the legend, steer well clear of this.As it is, this can best be described as "Joan of Arc Light: the film that tastes sweet, but won't make your intellect fatter."