Chances are you’ve heard of Joan of Arc — the famous martyr and feminist icon who disguised herself as a man in order to fight in the Hundred Years’ War and was eventually burned at the stake for it. And you probably wouldn’t associate the so-called Maid of Orléans’ story with whimsy. But that might change after watching the trailer for “Jeanette: The Childhood of Joan of Arc.”
From writer-director Bruno Dumont (“Camille Claudel 1915”), “Jeanette” is a musical reimagining of Joan of Arc as a child and young adult. Jeanette (Lise Leplat Prudhomme), as she’s called, is trying to make sense of the constant war and suffering that surrounds her. Through song, we see her form her own opinions about the war, devote herself to her faith, and receive her calling.
“After I raise the seige and save the Duke of Orléans, I’ll have the Dauphin crowned in the cathedral at Reims,” a teenage Jeannette (Jeanne Voisin) declares to a friend.
“The Lord told you that himself?” he quips back.
“No,” she replies, dead serious. “He sent Saint Michel, Saint Catherine, and Saint Marquerite.”
The French film features catchy original music from heavy metal artist Igorrr and choreography by Philippe Decoufle. There are even nuns doing the can-can and saints doing the Swim. Martyrdom never looked this fun.
For another depiction of unconventional nuns, you may want to check out “The Little Hours,” out June 30. Alison Brie, Aubrey Plaza, and Kate Micucci play medieval nuns who are sick of a life of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Especially chastity.
“Jeanette: The Childhood of Joan of Arc” will premiere at Cannes’ Directors Fortnight on May 21.
