David Ferguson Oak Cliff Film Festival 2018 Greetings again from the darkness. It's a rare treat to watch a 90 year old silent movie. Especially in a remastered format. Especially on the big screen. Especially at a historic theatre. Especially with a nearly packed house. And especially with a live score! The 7th annual Oak Cliff Film Festival, held at the Texas Theatre (opened 1931), afforded just such a treat with its Friday evening screening.Most know the story of Joan of Arc (Jeanne d'Arc), a teenage heroine of France for her role in the Hundred Year War. She claimed that she received spiritual and religious guidance through voices and visions. Once she was captured by English allies, she was charged with heresy and burned at the stake in Rouen in 1431. A quarter century later, the Pope declared her a martyr and she became a symbol of France - canonized as a saint in 1920. Of course, here the story is as much about the film as it is the martyr and historical figure.The eyes are what first grab our attention. The eyes of actress Maria Falconetti as Joan of Arc. It was Falconetti's only screen appearance, and though she spent the rest of her career on stage, this role cemented her place in cinematic history. Without the benefit of sound and voice, the silent era performer had to emote through eyes, facial expression and body movement. Few ever did it better than Falconetti. It's gut-wrenching to watch the church counsel attempt to break her resolve. Our minds hear the intensity of their voices though we only read the subtitles. Renowned Danish filmmaker Carl Theodor Dreyer directs the script from writer Joseph Delteil (taken mostly from the transcripts of the trial), and the cinematography is through the eye of 5 time Oscar nominee Rudolph Mate' (FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT, PRIDE OF THE YANKEES). It's impossible not to notice a style so different from modern day filmmaking. The harsh lighting and almost exclusive use of close-ups and medium shots bring an immediacy of which we aren't accustomed. The single piece set is quite unusual and provides a stage aura. Another thing that stands out is the editing style. Continuity of scene wasn't important here. What mattered was the sense of frantic pacing and over-bearing stress brought on by the rapid-fire questioning. We share the claustrophobic feeling with Joan, though of course, we know where this is all headed.As part of this special showing, the Oak Cliff Film Festival arranged for a live score performed by composer George Sarah, a 4 piece chamber orchestra, and a vocal group accompanying the music. Perhaps this meant even more to me since I visited Rouen last year, and the lasting legacy (almost 600 years) of this courageous young woman is evident throughout much of France. The re-mastered film is stunning to look at, and even more historically important knowing that the film had long thought to be lost to a fire. The story and the film are quite something to experience.

Robb C. Expressive eyes, tense lips, closed mouth, and the stare that just looks ahead and farther away from the desolate mundanity to settle to the glorious chants of heaven, Maria Falconetti easily and without a doubt gives one of the best performances found in the era of silent film. The Passion of Joan of Arc is one of the most influential French films of its time, and still continues to inspire today. It focuses on the last days of Joan of Arc's life, and dives right into her trial immediately after being captured and accused of being a heretic.Being banned in multiple countries as it was controversial during their time, this film is a strong testament on how far human nature can go, how humanity can easily shift towards "sides" depending on number. Likewise, this film is a spiritual experience that explores the idea of faith, and how much sacrifice one can put in just trying to protect or restore one's beliefs. It doesn't show Joan of Arc prior to her days at the trial. It doesn't show her victories, her accomplishments, nor her success in leading the English out of France. Instead, it completely strips her to a character undergoing through a strong crisis as she goes through a questioning of fate that ultimately decides life or death.I have seen the version with music in it (and am currently interested in viewing the completely silent one), and it is truly transcendent. Considering the fact that it was done way back in 1928 impressed me, and the metaphysical journey that this may bring to the viewer—religious or not, may take one to utmost beauty, even up to the brink of tears. Personally, the psychological power of the close-up made me sympathize much more with Joan, and the fact that Falconetti only acted once in her entire life is just stunning. Even without words, Falconetti is still able to display a performance of outright vulnerability while still being confident and at one with God.As per usual with silent films, I still did have some problems with this, and these are more personal ones that I found affecting my entertainment value of the film. As great as this film was, I found this one to be a difficult watch not just because of it's bleak subject matter, but also because of the way it was shot. I do understand the power of the close-up and I actually praised it a while earlier, but for me, using it for most of the film's shots was a mistake. There were barely any background pans or shots to establish the character's placement, so it's quite difficult to follow the location of each, making it sometimes a burden to watch. The wooden transitions between each scene also made everything jarring and dizzying. It's easy enough to forgive the film as it was almost made a hundred years ago, but I found myself occasionally distracted enough to pause the film, which isn't a good thing.In all, The Passion of Joan of Arc is easily commendable because of the technological advancement in film it made during that time, but the low rewatchability and abusive use of close-ups make this a difficult recommendation. Maria Falconetti's passionate performance may still make this film worthwhile, and the influence that this had on preceding films stretches out over many generations, but basing this on entertainment value, this film doesn't really hit the mark and, at times, feels outdated.

Foxxpix A number of challenges arise when attempting to produce a film based on historical events. The primary challenge being the decision of whose version of history is to be told. Another of the monumental challenges facing the filmmaker is deciding what resources to use in the design and execution of the film. By the late 1920's, advancements in cinematic equipment and technique were becoming more refined to include many of the basic cinematic innovations that are commonly used today. Careful filtering of different styles over the course of several decades led to these refinements. However, when it comes to methods of creating personal style, there are always those who want to spend time reinventing the wheel or those who decide that they know better than those that came before them. This often leads to artistic revolutions that last a short time before dying out and the art reverts to the basics. This essay will analyze the flaws in The Passion of Joan of Arc in both cinematic composition and narrative construction. Before film, audiences were used to going to plays and seeing the action from one vantage point. As the art of cinematography was developing, filmmakers realized that the action had to stay on the same axis for continuity. This has become known as the 180-degree rule. This is a common rule of axis that allows the audience to orient the characters' relationship to one another regardless of the compositional framing. The Passion of Joan of Arc frequently breaks this rule, which has the effect of disorienting the viewer and giving no firm frame of reference to the geography of the Mise-en-scène nor to the positions of characters. This issue is compounded by the overuse of close ups and washed out background that is bereft of any compositional detail. This was an odd choice considering the overwhelming abundance of magnificent architectural constructs available to those filming in Europe. This film is also hindered in the area of narrative construction. Although the historical figure of Joan of Arc might have been very familiar to European audiences due to her sainthood in 1920, it is no doubt true that some who may view this film might have no firm understanding of the events of the story. The lack of any expositional context is unforgivable even during this early period in cinema. The film opens with the book that supposedly contains the historical transcript of the trial from which the story is based. The text is written in two languages, one of which was swiftly fading from common use by the time of the production of the film. Another flaw in using this document as the basis for a story, which culminates in the burning death of a teenage girl, is the singular perspective of the transcript and the treatment of it as reliable. There exists no counterpoint to this trial therefore no advocacy of the defendant. These issues point out the basic artistic and technical flaws of filmmaking that had been weeded out by most in the industry by the time this film was made. The single redeeming characteristic of this film based on these criteria is the acting. Thompson and Bordwell say, "Renee Falconetti gave an astonishingly sincere, intense performance as Joan" (Kindle Loc. 5896) It can be said that the performances in The Passion of Joan of Arc are beyond any negative criticism. However, this sole exception cannot compensate for the overall poor execution of this production. Therefore, it can be argued that had the filmmaker used more fundamentally cinematic techniques, The Passion of Joan of Arc may not have fallen into obscurity only to be discovered in a sanitarium in Oslo back in the 80s.

evanston_dad Carl Dreyer's "The Passion of Joan of Arc" is a film that feels light years ahead of its time. Lean and mean, focusing its entire narrative on the interrogation of Joan that inevitably lead to her execution by burning at the stake, the film is kinetic in ways that most films even now aren't. Composed almost completely of tight close ups, Dreyer and crew cut rapidly between disconcerting, asymmetrical shots, giving the film a breathless, anxious, nearly frenzied pace.Maria Falconetti gives an almost unbelievably intense performance as the title heroine. Her performance, and the film in general, does get a bit monotonous -- it exists primarily of impassioned gazes into the middle distance, giant, tearing eyes opened wide, an expression of passionate, nearly demented religious fervor on her face. It's not a film that concerns itself with characters and plot, so we don't get to know Joan as a person. It's difficult to care for her particular plight and we instead feel compassion for her as one human being feeling compassion for another. For that reason, the film left me remembering its striking images and formal style more than any emotions I might have felt while watching it. But it's no less of a remarkable cinematic achievement for that.Grade: A