Starring: Milla Jovovich – as Joan of Arc
John Malkovich – as the Dauphin and as Charles VII of France
Faye Dunawaye – as Yolande de Aragon
Dustin Hoffman – as the Conscience
The Wikipedia website categorizes the film as a French /American historical drama directed by Luc Besson, and the script was written by both Besson and a partner named Andrew Berken.
The film is on the life of St. Joan of Arc, as a heroine of the 15th century. The role was played by Milla Jovovich.
This writer has not seen any of the other Joan of Arc films, although one has the feeling that the other Joan portrayals were perceived as the heroine and the sanitized version of the saint, as played by Ingrid Bergman.
From my own readings, Joan was always talked as the girl from Domremy who legend said, was destined to and who eventually saved France from the English, specifically by fighting for the French and thus paving the way for the coronation of the French King Charles VII.
The story further says that she heard the heavenly voices of St. Catherine and St. Michael, and as she grew older, these voices became stronger, urging her to lead the army of the French, take back English occupied Reims and eventually have the dauphin (prince) crowned king.
To truly test her, the dauphin asks someone else to sit on his throne to see if Joan will know the decoy from the real dauphin. But Joan guided by her voices bypasses the pretender and approaches as well as correctly identifies the dauphin, whom she has never ever seen. From there, the battle to save France begins.
Besson’s film may be seen or criticized under the psychoanalytical film theory. Here, he makes the viewer see Joan from the point of view of a psychologist and makes one wonder if she may have been psychotic. Besson’s choice of actors also make one speculate over his motives on actor or character presentation. The dauphin, played by John Malkovich, who is well known for giving more than flesh to the character he plays, shows the dauphin as a rather queer person. Not the kingly royal one would expect of a prince, but of a strange and eerie personality who looks (gazes) at the world with a strange gaze, which may have been normal of people during that era where individuals may either be friends or secret enemies.
The idea of being led into battle by a woman, a young maiden is taken as preposterous by the French army, who are perhaps among the most male chauvinist of the era. As one soldier in the film said, they are not used to taking orders from a girl.
They are not so convinced that Joan has to shout, “We have to do it and soon. I can hear God’s voice beating like a drum into my ears” or something to that effect.
The film also portrays the indignity the real Joan may have gone through to prove that she is indeed the virgin that the legend talks about.
The film further portrays Joan seeing a character called “Conscience”. Played by Dustin Hoffman, the character only appears in Joan’s mind and either approves or shed’s doubt on her actions. Further research on the theoretical foundations of psycho analysis, as gleaned from the Wikipedia, will show that Joan’s behavior may be seen as “determined by irrational drives” where these drives are largely not conscious.
Another theory under psychological analysis shows that “attempts to bring these drives into awareness meet resistance in many forms”. Something which indeed was portrayed in the film, from the Dauphin who doubted her, to the women of the court who poked her insides to prove her virginity, to the men who could not believe that a woman would lead them to victory.
Then too, there are, as said in the Wikipedia article, conflicts “between the conscious view of reality and unconscious “repressed” material which can result in mental disturbances such as anxiety and depression, as well as neurotic traits”.
Since these voices she hears are unseen, the director makes them or at least one of them come out in the role of “conscience” as played by Dustin Hoffman.
If Joan were a mental patient, then she verbalized “through fantasies and dreams”, among which may have been to liberate France, as she still believed in the idea of storming Paris even after her mission is done. But she fails in the attempt and is caught by the English, tried and burned as a witch.
The psychoanalytical theory says that the “viewing subject may be offered particular identifications (usually with a leading male character) from which to watch. The film’s main character is not male but Besson shows his character cutting off her hair to lessen her femininity and to satisfy the males’ curiosity as to whether indeed she can lead.
The film did not win any major award; infact, Ms. Jovovich won a Raspberry Award as worse actress. But it did win some acclaim for Best Director and Best Film (Lumiere Award).Milla Jovovich may not have been as remembered as Ingrid Bergman, who once played the same role . Still she was successful in making people think about Joan and how difficult it may have been to save a nation based on the dictates of voices only she could hear and how, guided by these, despite all obstacles, she managed to have crowned a French king
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