. . . just happened? Why does writer\director Robert Bresson assume that he can dispense with a back story and an ending here? If a person hasn't aced Western Civilization recently or grown up in New Orleans (which has a statue of Joan somewhere), they probably won't know Joan of Arc from Joan Van Ark. This film--THE TRIAL OF JOAN OF ARC--is based upon another French flick, the 1928 silent THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC, but as a "talkie," it manages to tell a lot LESS of Joan's story than its predecessor. As "Joan" in THE TRIAL OF JOAN OF ARC, Florence Delay seems much more happy-go-lucky than Melle Falconetti, who, as Joan, appears crazed and scared out of her skull in the earlier treatment, directed by Carl Dreyer. When it comes to saints, who can argue that crazy isn't better?
Review of The Trial of Joan of Arc
