brillig-2
If you are contemplating seeing the movie, I suggest watching the trailer first. It gives a very good taste of what you're setting yourself up for. If you've seen the trailer and watch the movie anyway, don't bash it. You had an accurate forecast of what you were going to see. OK. So much for my criticism of other reviews.The movie is a musical. I thought the musical performances of all the actors was mostly very good. There were a couple of spots where the singing seemed discordant with the accompaniment. But it wasn't grating. I had an idea from reading about the movie before I saw it what kind of music I was in for, so it didn't bother me. Not my preferred style of music, but it works in a sort of weird way.The basic story line of the movie is that Jeanette is a shepherd girl who spends most of her time thinking/singing/praying about the war - how the French are being defeated by the English and that someone needs to do something about it. She prays to God for a war lord to save the French. Of course, God chooses her. But she's slow to answer God's call, taking several years to muster up the decision to follow God's will, something she does at the end. We don't see the result. The movie is about her struggle leading up to that point.
johnfearly
Very much enjoyed "Jeanette" / The Childhood of Joan of Arc.
Both actresses playing very young Joan were very good. Right away, though, I need to state that I hope I can be forgiven for thinking that the first very charming actress portraying a younger version
of the person, could not be surpassed, or replaced, by "an older version".
For the first few minutes after, I mourned for "the loss" of the younger actress, while realizing that people -- including Joan of Arc -- do grow (agrandir, in French) whether or not one wants them to do so,
also on celluloid. The actress who ably replaces the younger girl is, like life itself, something that sort of happens. Too, she is very, very good in the follow-up role.This interpretation of Joan, a saint in the Roman Catholic Church, is quite intelligent, mature, thoughtful, and wise. Joan is suitably depicted as emotionally and spiritually mature for her age, quite athletic,
and consistently attuned from a very early age to politics. Viewers will have their own opinions about the nuns, the sisters Gervaise. My own thinking is that the singing was in a French manner, projecting
some things that are occasionally off-putting / antithetical / heretical? in terms of Christianity. Still, one should be aware that Joan lived c. 1412 to May 30, 1431, and the theology expressed may have been
either the "zeitgeist" of the times, or that of the director nowadays. Either way, this is a movie worth seeing for aficionados of Jehanne d'Arc. One final note: When doing a film about Joan of Arc, I truly
believe that one had better be French, or be very much immersed in the subject matter That being stated, I still feel sad for Jean Seberg, who play Joan in "Saint Joan". Finally, I very much applaud Bruno
Dumont, the director.
christopher-97335
One of the worst films I have seen in years. Pretentious, vapid, poorly filmed drivel. For art film masochists only. My assumption is the only reason this ridiculous piece of trash got made was with a French government subsidy. Don't waste your time or money on this one, as I unfortunately did. Believe me, you will leave the theater wishing you could have the last couple of hours of your life back. Music is awful, acting inept, strange attempts at dancing, no visual cohesion, dialogue ludicrous and conceptually the film is a mess, Nothing redeemable, although I thought some of the wandering sheep were more interesting than the humans on screen; at least they seemed to have some purpose in their actions.
