FILM

Released in 1928, this masterpiece of the silent era is renowned for its radical use of close-ups and its central performance by Maria Falconetti, a stage actress who performed no other major film roles. Director Carl Theodor Dreyer based the film on actual transcripts of the trial of Joan of Arc and chose to film the actors with no makeup, often using grotesque lighting and camera angles.

Dreyer, as a Dane telling the story of a beloved French figure, faced skepticism from French conservatives as well as ongoing censorship by religious and political authorities. When the film's final cut was rediscovered in an Oslo mental institution in 1981, the film was re-released and, over time, grew to achieve consistent recognition as one of the landmarks of silent cinema.