en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Passion_of_Joan_of_Arc
As the Wiki article would seem to show, this is a pretty significant movie in the history of cinema, evidenced by its high standing in various "greatest" polls. This was the first time I saw this movie, and I would agree that it is an emotionally powerful work. Einhorn's music certainly aided in that impression. This was the first time I had ever attended a movie with live musical accompaniment - by orchestra and choir, no less. It all made for a very moving experience. I'm sure there wasn't a dry eye in the concert hall afterward. Well, except maybe for the performers engrossed in the music-making; kind of a shame they couldn't enjoy the experience like the rest of us in the audience. But I guess performing the music was its own reward - and let me say, Einhorn's music was pretty magnificent in its own right.
Winnipeg filmmaker Guy Maddin, a huge fan of Dreyer, introduced the movie. He talked briefly about Dreyer's quirky approach to making this movie. Like how he had built huge sets, but you never really saw them in full, because Dreyer then perversely used tight close-up shots for most of the film! Maddin also talked about the film's troubled history (as also noted in the Wiki article). It's incredible the amount of adversity this movie went through, almost mirroring Joan of Arc herself. It's sad that the original negative was destroyed in a fire. As a movie buff, that kind of thing especially horrifies me. It's even sadder that a second negative that Dreyer slavishly worked to create was also apparently destroyed by fire. The only surviving prints after that time were clumsily edited copies that basically butchered Dreyer's vision of the movie. But then, as if by miracle, in 1981 an almost complete print of the original cut of the film was found in an Olso mental institution - and in a janitor's closet, for pete's sake! I mean, really, all that's missing was a "Beware of the Leper" sign!
I'm just glad The Passion of Joan of Arc has survived to be appreciated anew, and I'm very glad I went to this screening. A remarkable night at the movies.
So what is the point of this thread? Um...if you ever get the chance to see a movie with live musical accompaniment such as this, then take the chance!
