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A short silent film about Jeanne d'Arc. The medieval film removes the viewer from spatial relations and institutionalized the use of the close-up.
The film was released in 1899, written and directed by Georges Méliès.
Jeanne played by Jeanne d'Alcy.
Originally released: 1899
Director: Georges Méliès.
Runtime: 10 minutes
Language: -
Color: Black and White
Sound Mix: Silent
In the spring of 1900, Georges Méliès features Jeanne d’Arc. It is his second film after Cinderella (1899), and his first film that exceeds 200 meters. A copy of this magnificent film, painted with a brush, was found in 1982. Georges Méliès plays the father of Jeanne.
Breathtaking version of the classic story tells the life and death of the one and only Jeanne d'Arc. This film is unique for many different reasons including the fact that it runs ten minutes long, which certainly wasn't common for the day. Another unique factor is that the entire film was hand colored and this is where the true beauty of the movie comes into play.
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The colors of the film are downright brilliantly done and makes other color films from this period look quite poor. The red colors of the dresses and the bright lime colors are beautiful to look at.
The story is also told through narration and this is another plus as it's able to tell us a lot about what we're watching and it also points out the various roles being played by Melies. This film holds up incredibly well today and is one that would probably be enjoyed by plenty of kids who wouldn't normally watch a film from 1900.
Despite being made as early as 1900, Georges Méliès’ Joan of Arc was in fact the second adaptation of the legend: Georges Hatot’s The Execution of Joan of Arc (Execution de Jeanne d’Arc) was made in 1897.
However, with its ten-minute running time and eleven separate scenes, Méliès’ film was undoubtedly the first to attempt an overview of the entire saga, from the teenage Jeanne hearing voices to her military triumphs, capture and execution. |
Overview
