Saint Joan (1957)

In 1456, French King Charles VII recalls the story of how he met the seventeen-year-old peasant girl Joan of Arc, entrusted her with the command of the French Army, and ultimately burned her at the stake as a heretic.

Director:

Otto Preminger

Writers:

Graham Greene, George Bernard Shaw (play)

Stars:

Richard Widmark, Richard Todd, Anton Walbrook

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Richard Widmark	...	The Dauphin, Charles VII
Richard Todd	...	Dunois, Bastard of Orleans
Anton Walbrook	...	Cauchon - Bishop of Beauvais
John Gielgud	...	Earl of Warwick
Felix Aylmer	...	Inquisitor
Archie Duncan	...	Robert de Baudricourt
Harry Andrews	...	John de Stogumber
Margot Grahame	...	Duchesse de la Tremouille
Barry Jones	...	De Courcelles
Francis De Wolff	...	La Tremouille
Finlay Currie	...	Archbishop of Rheims
Victor Maddern	...	English Soldier
Bernard Miles	...	Master Executioner
David Oxley	...	'Bluebeard',- Gilles de Rais
Patrick Barr	...	Captain La Hire

Storyline

Young Joan of Arc comes to the palace in France to make The Dauphin King of France and is appointed to head the French Army. After winning many battles she is not needed any longer and soon she is thought of as a witch.

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Plot Keywords:

france | joan of arc | dream | trial | saint | 

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Taglines:

A Brilliant Triumph!

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | History

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 May 1957 (USA)

Also Known As:

Saint Joan

Filming Locations:

Shepperton Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$400,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

United Artists,Wheel Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Paul Scofield quit after a disagreement with Director Otto Preminger during the first cast read-through.

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Goofs

When Joan and the King stand by the river rallying the troops, the infantry men come running down the hill to join them. One of them falls on his face.

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Quotes

De Courcelles: Were you in a state of grace when you stole the Bishop's horse?
Cauchon: The devil take the Bishop's horse.

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Alternate Versions

Also available in computer colorized version (Hal Roach VHS)

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Connections

Version of Saint Joan (1967)

User Reviews

This is Shaw, NOT Who have you

Most of the comments made on this film suggest that the writers have neither read nor seen the George Bernard Shaw play on which it is based. Shaw in "St. Joan," as in every single one of his plays, is all about talk. It's impossible to make an action movie out of a Shaw play without doing it irremediable violence. "St. Joan" is a play about Nationalism and Protestantism, ideas that did not even exist in the period when the play is set. Shaw's St. Joan IS a French nationalist, which is what makes her an anathema to the British. Shaw's St. Joan IS a Protestant, inspired directly by the spirit of God, un-mediated by the Church, and that is why she is an anathema to the Catholic authorities. Preminger's "St. Joan" is an adaptation of the play and, because the play (in important respects) utterly defies film conventions, the movie is mediocre. Anyone who wants to understand "St. Joan" as Shaw conceived her needs either to read or see the play, preferably both. Unfortunately, "St. Joan" is rarely performed these days, partly because Shaw has fallen out of fashion but also because it takes an extraordinary young actress to perform convincingly as Shaw's Maid, a warrior child whose voices speak common sense to her, , and there aren't too many of those around. If a director wishes to make another FILM about Jean d'Arc, as someone, somewhere, some time will undoubtedly want to do, Shaw's play is not the place to look. It belongs to the stage or the page, not the movies.