RETRO REVIEW: Never let it be said that director Luc Besson can’t direct a visually stunning movie. THE MESSENGER: THE STORY OF JOAN OF ARC is a visually stunning movie but the story is where this film begins to fall apart. This is the first film about Joan of Arc that I’ve ever seen and I think that the story can be done much better. The visuals are striking and it’s jarringly violent but there are also comedic moments that makes the film’s tone difficult to find. This film is about as tonally unbalanced as its heroine is mentally unbalanced. I’m not up on my history of the period so I can’t say whether or not the portrayal of Joan is accurate or not but she seems to be suffering from Schizophrenia rather then hearing the voice of God. All this being said the acting is quite good. Milla Jovovich delivers one of her best performances. I just wish that she had a better script to use all of that energy on. The film also stars John Malkovich as the Dauphin who eventually becomes King of France. The role is too small for someone of his talent and he’s very much wasted. Also on board is Faye Dunaway as the dauphin’s mother-in-law. She’s quite good in this film, it’s a small supporting role but she’s very good in it. She’s very much attuned to what is happening in her court. The script is where the problems lie. There is little, to no, emotional attachment to any of the characters. Think about it, Joan was burnt alive at the stake after being accused of witch craft and heresy and other things (like I said I’m not quite sure how historically accurate those accusations are) Since it’s a movie about her we should be upset when she is killed, we should be angered. But in the end it was just a scene of a woman burning to death. Another major problem with the film is that it portrays the English as villainous characters with no complexities. It made it too black and white and that was very disappointing. https://youtube/watch?v=6gv2p2WZoUE
Posted on: Tue, 06 Jan 2015 22:00:01 +0000
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