Rating: 
Summary: A great watch, excellent leads.
Review: I picked up Joan of Arc upon reading the reviews both here and the Internet Movie Database, and the purchase of this disc has been worth the far more than the price tag on it. Leelee Sobieski's Joan was a completely believable person, full of the emotions, lack of confidence at times, but ultimately inspired with a vision that she holds on through-out. The 180 motion picture does indeed bear a great deal of resemblance to scenes in Braveheart (particularly the battle at Falkirk and the execution scenes in the latter), but comparisons aside, I found myself moved to tears still in Joan. I was particularly impressed with Peter Strauss (Captain La Hire), and Olympia Dukakis (Mother Babette) too. I read that this series was made for $20 million- a paltry sum compared to the bloated budgets of Hollywood movies today who frequently offer scarcely the emotional impact this show had. The sets used were amazingly real, landscapes and costumes were stunning, and the entire show had a nitty, down into the dirt look about it. My only (small) gripes was the casting of Neil Patrick Harris, who didn't quite look the part of the King Charles, and didn't seem too comfortable with his lines; and PG rating of the show also meant that the show could not demonstrate the gore and violence that one finds in Braveheart. But ultimately, this is still an excellent picture, and though the forthcoming two other Joan of Arc pictures (starring Mira Sorvino and Milla Jovovich in the title roles) will almost certainly bring about comparisons, this picture can hold its head high amidst such strong competition.
Rating:
Summary: Joan's essence captured
Review: Even though "Joan Of Arc" was just a television movie it was well made. It captured your attention from beginning to end and gave you some insight on what Joan accomplished in her life. Leelee Sobieski (actress) intelligently portrayed Joan as an innocent farm girl to a brave, yet still sweet, leader. In the scenes of Joan's court trials Leelee acted amazingly. She showed how Joan could be witty while answering questions from the clergy. The rest of the cast also played there parts well and helped make the film seem more realistic. It had older, more well known actors and some great younger actors. This movie was filmed on wonderful locations, as well. For example, the cathedrals and forts in the battle scenes looked incredible. Basically this film was outstanding! I would have to say that it was much better than "The Messenger" in which Milla Jovavich portrayed Joan as a more disturbed and violent person. Sure, I agree Joan may have not been as calm as she is in "Joan of Arc", but I refuse to believe that she was as crazy as the person that was in "The Messenger". Based on some things I have read about the actual trial and life of Joan , I must say that Sobieski captured the essence of Joan better than Jovavich. If you want a great Joan Of Arc movie to watch, I enthusiastically suggest the CBS version!
Rating:
Summary: Joan of Arc
Review: Of all movies and/or televisions programmes I have seen about Joan of Arc, this one is the best. LeeLee Sobieski was the best and most believable Joan I have ever seen. LeeLee brings the human-side of the equation into the young warrior/martyr. Also, it is refreshing to actually have a very young woman played by a young actress. In fact, the whole cast, screenplay, settings, etc were so realistic. In Joan's death scene, LeeLee was the only Joan of Arc who made me cry so deeply. Others have only made me shed a tear or two. But LeeLee, as Joan, showed true fear; crying out for God and Jesus. Her close friend, who helped Joan begin her quest and fought with her in from the very beginning, held a crucifix "at the level of [her] eyes", and tried to give her a chance and hope of rescue. Instead, he witnessed her death. The cast is truly amazing. Not only were there semi-known and well-known actors, but also high-profile actors, such as Peter O'Toole, Maximillian Schell, Shirley Maclean. I saw this version of Joan of Arc on televison as a mini-series (and recorded it), as well as bought the VHS tape version (abridged).
If it is at all possible, try to look for the complete version of this epic. PS: This is even better than the one with Igrid Bergman.
Rating: 
Summary: A Joan without edge...
Review: ...a too sweet Joan, an unconvincing Joan, a boring Joan. The flames were too long in coming.
Rating:
Summary: A soul-stirring epic masterpiece
Review: Only rarely does a television miniseries rival the power, beauty, and excellence of Hollywood's most celebrated theatrical releases. 1999's Joan of Arc is one of those rare gems; it is simply an exquisite film of epic proportions, boasting one of the most impressive cast lists I have ever seen. Yet even among such stellar names as Jacqueline Bisset, Peter O'Toole, Robert Loggia, Shirley MacLaine, and Maximilian Schell, the young Leelee Sobieski keeps all eyes riveted upon herself with her moving, deeply human portrayal of one of history's most famous and tragic heroines. Over the course of three hours, we follow the young peasant girl who became The Maid of Orleans, Joan of Arc, from the day of her birth to her final fiery moments. I do not know enough details of the historical Joan of Arc's life to truly judge the historical accuracy of this film, but from what I can tell and have read, it does try mightily to follow the story as closely as possible, working especially hard to recreate the social and political situation of Joan's time. The historical Joan of Arc remains a controversial figure, with learned men and women interpreting her life and story in a couple of quite divergent ways. This movie's Joan is the bravest and most pious of souls, and she meets her fate willingly as a martyr and not a victim; her faith in God's plan for her never wavers. The presentation of her visions is kept low-key and free of creative exploitation. The compassion of her soul is revealed countless times over the course of the movie, and the incredible humanity of her character is this film's true strength. Still, it remains difficult to understand exactly how the French nation could turn against and burn at the stake a girl who fought for the unification of the French people. The film offers some illuminating yet difficult to understand (at least for me) reasons and motivations through the story of Bishop Cauchon. Peter O'Toole is absolutely marvelous as Cauchon, reflecting much of Joan's tragic end in his own life. The character remained something of an enigma to me until the end, but no moment was as moving and telling as a short shot of Cauchon privately breaking down in tears as Joan is being executed. Shirley MacLaine warrants special mention in honor of her memorable cameo appearance toward the end. Suffice it to say that I could write many glowing paragraphs in praise of all of the incredible performances in this movie. The only performance that failed to enthrall me was Neil Patrick Harris's portrayal of King Charles; even with his Moe Howard-inspired haircut, all I could see was Doogie Howser, making it hard for me to accept the wiliness and despotism of the character. No epic is complete without incredible visuals and sound, and Joan of Arc is amply blessed, with an exception or two, in both regards. The music is just wonderful and soul-stirring, particularly the one battle scene in which the angelic voice of Charlotte Church singing Panis Angelicus looms over the fray. The 15th century battle scenes were done quite well, as was the look and feel of the mediaeval French setting. One would never know that filming actually took place in the Czech Republic. The fact that this is not a big-budget Hollywood theatrical release is apparent in two scenes, though; both of these involve characters standing in the foreground watching a group of people in the background, and it appears obvious to my eyes that what we are seeing in front of our characters is a screen projection. My only other quibbles have to do with the actual fight scenes. While men were slashing each other down left and right, I only saw blood appear on one sword over the course of the movie. Even more interestingly, whenever an important character was killed or injured in battle, both sides seemed to just stop fighting as long as we and the other characters were focused on the injured party. All in all, though, I was more than impressed with Joan of Arc. No matter how accurate or inaccurate it might be in terms of the history, it is inarguably a touching dramatic masterpiece. Even though you know how it will end even before you watch it, the final moments are sure to send tears coursing down your cheeks and move your heart in ways few movies can ever succeed in doing. Leelee Sobieski is fast becoming one of my favorite actresses, and this movie is one I will not soon forget.
Rating:
Summary: Maybe The Worst Film EVER (no joke)
Review: This is a sad excuse for a movie; it's terribly uninteresting, uninspired, and bland. It may be the worst film I have ever seen, at least in along time. Technically, it's more than flawed, it's broken; shattered really. First, the acting is awful and inexcusable. Blame should be spread evenly amongst the whole cast with a huge mound piled on Leelee Sobieski for her role as Joan. As Joan, she is asked to carry the movie, and she fails miserably. She lacks charisma and screen presence; there is also the odd way in which she speaks sometimes. When reciting some of her poorly written lines, she almost closes he mouth and mumbles them out all while making a weird face. Next problem: 95 percent of the shots are close-ups. This is not an exaggeration. The shot selection isn't varied with the only change in the opening, ending, and battle scenes (sometimes). The film suffers greatly and is a result of a director and cinematographer not suitable to work on second-rate hip-hop music videos. This made-for-tv movie (very obvious) is a perfect example of everything you wouldn't want to happen in a film including some you wouldn't even think of. Included are bad costumes, unbelievable sets, and extremely weak writing. Bad special effects are also present as well as bad music at crucial times. The cameras can be jumpy, probably due to the cameramen dozing off inbetween takes (no one could blame them). Plus, the story seems stretched, and that was before I read the factual account. It seemed like all the facts were skewered with the only thing historically accurate in the name. One more thing, they are supposed to be French but nothing other then a few over pronounced French words thrown in their conversations suggest that they are. If they speak English, that's one thing. But if they all have different English accents (no French accents, not even an attempted one) but the try to throw in French words randomly in their already awkward and cheesy dialogue, that's completely different. Joan of Arc is unforgivable with all its mistakes, and there was many of them, it led to and excruciatingly bad movie that was way to long (poor editing), one of the worst that I have ever seen.
Rating:
Summary: Joan's essence captured
Review: Even though "Joan Of Arc" was just a television movie it was well made. It captured your attention from beginning to end and gave you some insight on what Joan accomplished in her life. Leelee Sobieski (actress) intelligently portrayed Joan as an innocent farm girl to a brave, yet still sweet, leader. In the scenes of Joan's court trials Leelee acted amazingly. She showed how Joan could be witty while answering questions from the clergy. The rest of the cast also played there parts well and helped make the film seem more realistic. It had older, more well known actors and some great younger actors. This movie was filmed on wonderful locations, as well. For example, the cathedrals and forts in the battle scenes looked incredible. Basically this film was outstanding! I would have to say that it was much better than "The Messenger" in which Milla Jovavich portrayed Joan as a more disturbed and violent person. Sure, I agree Joan may have not been as calm as she is in "Joan of Arc", but I refuse to believe that she was as crazy as the person that was in "The Messenger". Based on some things I have read about the actual trial and life of Joan , I must say that Sobieski captured the essence of Joan better than Jovavich. If you want a great Joan Of Arc movie to watch, I enthusiastically suggest the CBS version!
Rating:
Summary: Joan of Arc
Review: As I watched this movie, I was hooked by the minutes that ticked by. Yes, I have seen The Messanger, and I absolutely hated it. (I may not, nor does anyone else, know exactly who and how Joan of Arc was really like, but the insane-possessed version of Joan of Arc in Messanger and hard to follow movie was not it). This version, with Leelee Sobieski was outstanding. I am aware that the history of the movie is not entirely correct; however, the movie in itself was great! All I can say, is if you haven't seen it, you need to. (and don't waste your time and money on Messanger...believe me--don't get me started on that movie.)
Rating: 
Summary: A Charming movie but lacks reality
Review: All in all, I think this movie was another Revolution (1985). It was a movie that was, in all senses of the word, mediocre. The battle scenes look fairly well done, the armor and costumes could definitely use some work, and the creators of this film gave a very faint sense of reality.
I usually enjoy tv movies, but this was an exception. I honestly cannot imagine why this movie is so well spoken of. I was not in any way, shape, or form moved by it. After comparing this to The Messenger, I can see with ease that the Messenger is far more REALISTIC! The Messenger had gory battle scenes, limbs amputated, arrows piercing chests, men with their faces bashed in, rivers of blood. Most people seem not to be too fond of that. But that is what it was like back then! I am a historian on medieval combat, bare that in mind in this review and I can tell you from a professional standpoint those scenes were very accurate to the time; the rape scenes, the burning villages, the sniveling politics, all that was what it was like.
Joan of Arc seems to romanticize a dark period in time. The armor looks cheep, the facts are very misconstrued, and the viewers would rather believe a fairy tail than a dark reality. La Hire described Agincourt by saying, "The English outnumbered us. We numbered in 5,000," and later saying, "Glasdale's sword was the bloodiest." Analyzing that, that is 75% lie. The French outnumbered the English horrendously (25,000 French, 6,000 English) and neither La Hire nor Glasdale was at that battle.
I also just love how everyone believes Joan of Arc was a charming, inspiring, brilliant, moving, and daring leader. I must ask: is everyone as ignorant as people in my profession claim? Apparently. People like to believe Churchill was a benevolent man, but in reality he was bitter, cynical, had a drinking problem, and cheated on his wife.
Joan of Arc was not a glowing leader. She was impatient, impulsive, questionably insane, and would bark at those who defied her will. And for people who do not believe in God like me, the fact she was sent by God is bull. Even if God is real, what she did was no miracle. There is not feat that can be worthy of calling a miracle. She defeated an overextended army.
The Messenger is a dark movie, but that Joan is what she was really like; all over the place. She did not shine in battle, she, like any human, was afraid and uncertain. You can't expect a teenage girl to act like Saint George in combat, because most strong, butch, able bodied men are as scared as children.
Back to the movie itself, it is, like I said, mediocre. The production value was reasonable, the accuracy is way off, and there is slight miscasting, on King Charles' part. I never saw the show he was in, so I approached it with an open mind to his acting, but it came out scarcely convincing.
Leelee Sobieski plays the part well, but not accurately. She plays the time-honored benevolent legend, when in fact she was more likely a slightly insane, charismatic girl seeking to serve her country, and was more a "for show" commander than an actual one, (keyword "likely" pertaining to the fact this is a more common but less like theory)
If you would like a good film, this movie is not a bad choice, but do not expect to see the reality of the Hundred Years War. If you want to see the bloody and gory truth, watch The Messenger.
Rating:
Summary: Better have a dozen boxes of tissue when you watch this.....
Review: This is the best movie I have seen in a long time. I always thought if a movie brings a tear to the eye it is a good movie, and this movie will use up your water works.....This movie is a MUST see.....Her faith is remarkable, and very inspirational.
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