The Passion of Joan of Arc is an aesthetically fascinating film. It tells an interesting, true legend, stars an unknown actress who would never act in another film, and has a very unique and fitting visual style that was very uncommon for the time. The film recounts the final hours of the life of Joan of Arc as she is put on trial, tortured, imprisoned and then executed.
The look of the film is what really makes it stand out. One aspect of the cinematography that makes it unique and adds to the intensity is the shot sizes. The film is essentially almost entirely comprised of close-up shots. Much of the film involves close looks at Joan’s condemners asking questions and seeing her response. All of the close-ups of character’s faces really allow the viewer to see and understand the pain and emotion of Joan and her accusers. Maria Pramaggiore and Tom Wallis comment on the frequency of the close-up shot by writing, “The narrative focus on Joan’s trial and use of close-ups emphasize Joan’s spiritual power...Dreyer championed the close-up because he believed the soul is visible in the human face.”[i] The viewer frequently sees the pain and dedication of Joan through the performance of Maria Falconetti and Dreyer’s use of close shots of her face. The camera staying close on reactions and faces with little movement increases the intensity of the shots. The trial/interrogation is almost all close shots, which helps create an atmosphere that is uncomfortable, disoriented, and extreme – the same feelings the protagonist is feeling in that situation.
The composition of shots in the film, accompanied by the set design assisted in creating the intense and emotional mood of the film as well. The focus of the film is clearly the strong performances and consequently, the faces of the characters are the prominent part of the framing in the film. It is extremely effective and creates a bond between the audience and the protagonist. Mast and Kawain write, “Dreyer fills the frame with faces and seeks out each one’s essence…the bare white walls of the set make the richly textured human features leap out at the viewer.”[ii] The faces remain prominent throughout the film thanks to the performance but also the set as previously mentioned. David Cook offers another reason to keep focus on the actor’s faces as well as for the shot size. He writes that Dreyer “constructs a formal space for the sacred (that of Joan) untouched by the space of the profane (that of her inquisitors).”[iii] She is kept away from the “evil” characters in the frames but when she is on-screen, all focus is directed to her face and eyes so that the audience can get a closer understanding to the internal conflict within her (will she really reject an offer to renounce what she did if it will save her life).
One other technique utilized in the film to add more humanity to the story and performances was the decision to not use makeup – a revolutionary idea at the time. Film experts have made many comments about this decision. By creating a film without the assistance of makeup, the realism of the film increases exponentially. It is “a film of faces without makeup” and the casting allowed for audiences to notice the handsome face of Joan’s “one compassionate accuser and the wrinkled imperfections of the faces of her accusers.”[iv]
All of these visual components (the framing, shot sizes, lack of makeup) help create a very realistic, gritty feel to an emotional, humanistic story. These techniques allowed for viewers to truly look into the eyes and souls of the characters – especially Joan and sympathize with her more easily because the audience can feel like they understand the struggle she is going through. The film tells a very real, vivid, personal story effectively through the cinematic techniques and performances by the actors.
[i] Maria Pramaggiore and Tom Wallis, Film: A Critical Introduction, Second Edition (London: Laurence King Publishing Ltd, 2008), 145.
[ii] Gerald Mast and Bruce F. Kawin, A Short History of the Movies: Ninth Edition (New York: Pearson Education Inc, 2006), 250.
[iii] David A. Cook, A History of Narrative Film: Fourth Edition (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2004), 312.
[iv] Mast and Kawain, 249.
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