Joan of Arc (miniseries)

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Joan of Arc
JoanofArcFilm1999.jpg
DVD cover for the film
GenreHistorical Drama/Biography/Adventure
Written by Michael Alexander Miller
Ronald Parker
Directed by Christian Duguay
Starring Leelee Sobieski
Chad Willett
Peter O'Toole
Jacqueline Bisset
Powers Boothe
Neil Patrick Harris
Maximilian Schell
Maury Chaykin
Olympia Dukakis
Jonathan Hyde
Robert Loggia
Peter Strauss
Shirley MacLaine
Composers Asher Ettinger
Tony Kosinec
Charlotte Church
(special vocals)
Country of originCanada
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes2
Production
Executive producersGraham Flashner
Ed Gernon
Peter Sussman
Producer Peter Bray
Cinematography Pierre Gill
Editor Ralph Brunjes
Running time140 minutes (180 minutes - uncut version)
Production companies CBC
Alliance Atlantis Communications
Budget$20.000.000 (estimated)
Original release
ReleaseMay 16 (1999-05-16) 
May 18, 1999 (1999-05-18)

Joan of Arc is a 1999 Canadian two-part television miniseries about the 15th-century Catholic saint of the same name. The miniseries stars Leelee Sobieski as Saint Joan. A joint production of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and Alliance Atlantis Communications, it was shown internationally in 1999.

Contents

The miniseries received thirteen Primetime Emmy Awards nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations.

Plot

The miniseries tells the story of Joan of Arc, from her birth in 1412 until her death in 1431.

Joan of Arc is born in 1412 in the village of Domrémy in the war zone of Northern France. During her youth, she often witnesses the horrors of war, and when 11 years old she starts hearing divine voices. Her spirit is kept high by the legend of the Maiden of Lorraine. This says that a young maiden one day will unite the divided country and lead the people to freedom.

At 17, Joan's village is invaded and burned, and her blind best friend, Emile, killed. She begs God to tell her what she said to deserve this, and the visions come back, telling her to travel to Charles, (rightful heir to the throne) and reunite France under his crown.

Joan leaves her small village to find Charles. She jumps into a livestock cart that is supposedly being taken to the king. Instead she is taken to Vaucouleurs, where she is denied help to get to Charles. Here she finds refuge with a nun, who helps her unite the people of Vaucoleurs and build defenses against the English and Burgundian invaders. With this unification and defensework, rumor starts spreading that Joan is the Maid of Lorraine.

Although Joan doesn't seem to believe that she is The Maid, she goes along with it to give the people hope. After bringing the people together, the lord of Vaucouleurs finally gives her the tools she needs to find Charles.

Cast

Awards and nominations

YearAssociationCategoryNominee(s)Result
1999 Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Art Direction for a Miniseries or a Movie Michael Joy, Shannon Grover, Martin MartinecNominated
Outstanding Casting for a Miniseries, Movie, or a Special Deirdre Bowen, Susan Glicksman, Fern OrensteinNominated
Outstanding Costumes for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special John HayNominated
Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special Christian DuguayNominated
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie Leelee SobieskiNominated
Outstanding Miniseries Joan of ArcNominated
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie Peter O'TooleWon
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie Jacqueline BissetNominated
Olympia DukakisNominated
Television Critics Association Awards Outstanding Achievement in Movies, Miniseries and Specials Won
2000 Golden Globe Awards Best Miniseries or Television Film Joan of ArcNominated
Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film Leelee SobieskiNominated
Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film Peter O'TooleNominated
Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film Jacqueline BissetNominated
Satellite Awards Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film Leelee SobieskiNominated
Best Miniseries Joan of ArcNominated

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joan of Arc</span> French folk heroine and saint (1412–1431)

Joan of Arc is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronation of Charles VII of France during the Hundred Years' War. Claiming to be acting under divine guidance, she became a military leader who transcended gender roles and gained recognition as a savior of France.

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The siege of Orléans marked a turning point of the Hundred Years' War between France and England. The siege took place at the pinnacle of English power during the later stages of the war, but was repulsed by French forces inspired by the arrival of Joan of Arc. The French would then regain the initiative in the conflict and began to recapture territories previously occupied by the English.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leelee Sobieski</span> American actress and artist (born 1983)

Liliane Rudabet Gloria Elsveta "Leelee" Sobieski is an American artist and retired actress. She achieved fame in her teens with roles in films such as Deep Impact (1998), Never Been Kissed, Eyes Wide Shut, Here on Earth (2000), Joy Ride and The Glass House. She received Emmy and Golden Globe Award nominations for her portrayal of the title character in the television film Joan of Arc (1999), and a further Golden Globe nomination for her performance in the NBC miniseries Uprising (2001). Sobieski continued to work in films and on television until retiring in 2012, after which she focused on her children and art career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canonization of Joan of Arc</span> Mass of granting sainthood to Joan of Arc

Joan of Arc (1412–1431) was formally canonized as a saint of the Roman Catholic Church on 16 May 1920 by Pope Benedict XV in his bull Divina disponente, which concluded the canonization process that the Sacred Congregation of Rites instigated after a petition of 1869 of the French Catholic hierarchy. Although pro-English clergy had Joan burnt at the stake for heresy in 1431, she was rehabilitated in 1456 after a posthumous retrial. Subsequently, she became a folk saint among French Catholics and soldiers inspired by her story of being commanded by God to fight for France against England. Many French regimes encouraged her cult, and the Third Republic was sympathetic to the canonization petition prior to the 1905 separation of church and state.

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Yolande of Aragon was Duchess of Anjou and Countess of Provence by marriage, who acted as regent of Provence during the minority of her son. Yolande played a crucial role in the struggles between France and England, influencing events such as the financing of Joan of Arc's army in 1429 that helped tip the balance in favour of the French. She was also known as Yolanda de Aragón and Violant d'Aragó. Tradition holds that she commissioned the famous Rohan Hours.

<i>Joan of Arc</i> (1948 film) 1948 film by Victor Fleming

Joan of Arc is a 1948 American hagiographic epic film directed by Victor Fleming, and starring Ingrid Bergman as the eponymous French religious icon and war heroine. It was produced by Walter Wanger and is based on Maxwell Anderson's successful Broadway play Joan of Lorraine, which also starred Bergman, and was adapted for the screen by Anderson himself, in collaboration with Andrew Solt. It is the only film of an Anderson play for which the author wrote the film script. It is the last film Fleming directed before his death in 1949.

<i>Joan of Arc</i> (1900 film) 1900 French film

Joan of Arc is a 1900 French silent film directed by Georges Méliès, based on the life of Joan of Arc.

Robert de Baudricourt, Seigneur de Baudricourt, Blaise, Buxy and Sorcy was a minor figure of 15th century French nobility. The son of the Chamberlain of the Duke of Bar, his principal claim to fame is to have been the first stepping stone to the noble life of Joan of Arc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alternative historical interpretations of Joan of Arc</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isabelle Romée</span> Mother of Joan of Arc

Isabelle Romée, also known as Isabelle de Vouthon and Isabelle d'Arc (1377–1458) and Ysabeau Romee, was the mother of Joan of Arc. She grew up in Vouthon-Bas and later married Jacques d'Arc. The couple moved to Domrémy, where they owned a farm consisting of about 50 acres (200,000 m2) of land. After their daughter's famous exploits in 1429, the family was granted noble status by Charles VII in December of that year. Isabelle moved to Orléans in 1440 after her husband's death and received a pension from the city. She petitioned Pope Nicholas V to reopen the court case that had convicted Joan of heresy, and then, in her seventies, addressed the opening session of the appellate trial at Notre Dame cathedral in Paris. The appeals court overturned Joan's conviction on 7 July 1456. Isabelle died two years later, probably at Sandillon near Orléans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trial of Joan of Arc</span> 1431 trial and execution of French saint Joan of Arc for heresy

The Trial of Joan of Arc was a 15th century legal proceeding against Joan of Arc, a French military leader under Charles VII during the Hundred Years' War. During the siege of Compiègne in 1430, she was captured by Burgundian forces and subsequently sold to their English allies. She was prosecuted by a pro-English church court at Rouen, Normandy in 1431. The court found her guilty of heresy and she was burned at the stake. The verdict was later nullified at Joan's rehabilitation trial, which was overseen by the Inquisitor-General, Jean Bréhal, in 1456. Considered a French national heroine, she was declared a saint by the Roman Catholic Church in 1920. The trial is one of the most famous in history, becoming the subject of many books and films.

Pierre d'Arc (1408–1467) was a French soldier whose place in history is due to his service in the army made famous by his younger sister Joan of Arc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean d'Aulon</span> French soldier and Joan of Arcs guard

Jean d'Aulon (1390–1458) was a French knight and lord best known for serving alongside Jeanne d'Arc as her soldier, steward, bodyguard, and squire. Some sources incorrectly attribute the role of d'Arc's bodyguard to Gilles de Rais. d'Aulon was an avid and detailed journaler and his records, considered to be honest and straightforward, set the foundation for what we know about Jeanne d'Arc, including her apparent amenorrhea.

<i>Joan the Woman</i> 1916 film

Joan the Woman is a 1916 American epic silent drama film directed by Cecil B. DeMille and starring Geraldine Farrar as Joan of Arc. The film premiered on Christmas Day in 1916. This was DeMille's first historical drama. The screenplay is based on Friedrich Schiller's 1801 play Die Jungfrau von Orleans. This film was considered to be the "first cinematic spectacle about Joan of Arc."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacques d'Arc</span> Father of Joan of Arc

Jacquesd'Arc was a farmer from Domrémy, France who was the father of the French military leader and Catholic saint Joan of Arc. D'Arc is most known for being an influence on his daughter Joan's life, developing her leadership abilities through his example as a local government and military leader as well as restricting her ambitions with his controlling behaviour that resulted in a strained relationship between them.

Jean de Metz was a French nobleman who is known primarily for his role in the exploits of Joan of Arc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">French history in the English-speaking theatre</span>

French history has been the basis of plays in the English-speaking theatre since the English Renaissance theatre.

Bertrand de Poulengy was a French nobleman who is best known for his association with Joan of Arc during the Hundred Years' War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">March to Reims</span>

After the French lifted the siege of Orléans and won a decisive victory at the Battle of Patay, the English and Burgundians no longer posed a threat. Joan of Arc convinced the Dauphin Charles to go to Reims for his coronation. Successfully marching their army though the heart of territory held by the hostile Burgundians solidified the Dauphin’s regrasp of the throne of France. He had been disinherited from it through the Treaty of Troyes.