The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) - The Criterion Collection

Synopsis

With its stunning camerawork and striking compositions, Carl Th. Dreyer’s The Passion of Joan of Arc convinced the world that movies could be art. Renée Falconetti gives one of the greatest performances ever recorded on film, as the young maiden who died for God and France. Long thought to have been lost to fire, the original version was miraculously found in perfect condition in 1981—in a Norwegian mental institution. Criterion is proud to present this milestone of silent cinema in a new special edition featuring composer Richard Einhorn’s Voices of Light, an original opera/oratorio inspired by the film.

Cast

Jeanne	Renée Falconetti
Pierre Cauchon	Eugène Silvain
Jean d’Estivet	André Berley
Nicolas Loyseleur	Maurice Schutz
Jean Massieu	Antonin Artaud
Jean Lemaître	Gilbert Dalleu
Nicolas de Houppeville	Jean d’Yd
Jean Beaupère	Louis Ravet

Credits

Director	Carl Th. Dreyer
Cinematography	Rudolf Maté
Screenplay	Carl Th. Dreyer
In collaboration with	Joseph Delteil
Historical consultant	Pierre Champion
Art direction	Hermann Warm
Production Design	Jean Hugo
Costumes	Valentine Hugo

Disc Features

Gorgeous new transfer of the original version, with digital restoration
Richard Einhorn’s Voices of Light: A choral and orchestral work performed by vocal group Anonymous 4 soloist Susan Narucki and the Radio Netherlands Philharmonic and Choir
Audio essay by Casper Tybjerg, a Dreyer scholar from the University of Copenhagen
An extensive production design archive
A history of Passion’s many versions, with clips
Audio interview excerpts with the star’s daughter, Hélène Falconetti
An essay by Richard Einhorn on Joan of Arc and Voices of Light, plus a video essay on the music’s production
Voices of Light libretto booklet, including the medieval texts used in Einhorn’s composition

From the Current

Realized Mysticism in The Passion of Joan of Arc

by Carl Theodor Dreyer Nov 8, 1999

The virgin of Orleans and those matters that surrounded her death began to interest me when the shepherd girl’s canonization in 1920* once again drew the attention of the public-at-large to the events and actions involving her—and not only in France. In addition to Bernard Shaw’s ironical play...