Joan of Arc: A deadly warrior

Deadliest Warriors is a tv series that takes two people or groups and try to simulate who would have most likely won a battle. One episode in the third season took Joan of Arc and the Battle of Orleans versus William the Conqueror in the Battle of Hastings.
A major difference that the hosts recognize as they feature their first female warrior is the way a man thinks and acts versus a woman's. One of the hosts stated that a woman would have been more strategic in battle and to consider that when portraying Joan. From the sources we have read, it didn't seem like Joan did much strategizing or if she did, it wasn't often with other leaders.

Joan's siege cannon that she would have been more effective to break walls and cause more damage than William's Torsion catapult. While the Torsion canon would have been able to cause damage within the walled city and "spread the Bubonic Plague" according to the show, Joan's canon would have been able to weaken the wall itself and go through a humans body with a short reload time. In the simulation comparison, Joan would have won the long range siege weapon.

For Joan's archery simulation, they had chosen the steel crossbow. The reload time for it proved to be unfavorable compared to William's composite crossbow but had more hits, more deadly and accurate. Since the battles would have been during a siege and time wasn't as much of an issue, Joan won the best medium range weapon category.

Although William's sword proved to have been the better choice for close-range weapons, Joan ranked as having more intuition than William and ultimately won the simulation when put in a computer simulation.

After doing their best with historians, technology and weaponry experts, the show does the best it can at guessing what would happen. It is all simulated to the best they can do.


Photo Sources
http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130407190444/deadliestfiction/images/6/63/William_the_conqueror.png

http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110902204703/deadliestwarrior/images/1/10/JoanOfArc.jpg


Video Source
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhaTSM9BLvQ

Besson's Leading Ladies

After watching the film The Messenger, I was intrigued by the director Luc Besson, and began researching his other works. To begin, Besson himself is French, and has won numerous awards for his filmmaking and directing abilities. Besson’s nationality lends some insight into his interests in Joan, although several of his works feature strong female leads, both historical and fictional. Aside from The Messenger, Besson also directed the film The Lady, based on the life of Aung San Suu Kyi, a Burmese politician and leader. After watching the trailer for The Lady, I saw several parallels to that of Besson’s The Messenger. First, both Joan and Aung are shown to have witnessed a violent death of a loved one, which Besson interprets as motivation for the adult lives both women would later lead. Another interesting connection between the two films is Besson’s portrayal of both France and Burma being in times of crisis. The subsequent rise of both Joan and Aung is further elevated due to the dire situation in both countries.

                                          Movie poster from Besson's film The Lady (2011)

Besson also directed the recent film Lucy, a fictional film centered on one woman who becomes able to utilize one hundred percent of her brain (most humans use less than twenty percent scientists surmise). While Lucy is perhaps an odd comparison to Joan and The Messenger, it features yet another central, strong female character. I saw the film Lucy this summer, and believe that regardless of its highly fictional content, Besson borrowed several of the themes from The Messenger. Lucy, like Joan, is also from modest beginnings, who becomes involved in circumstances beyond her control. As the film progresses, she supersedes gender stereotypes as she becomes a lethal fighter, similar to Besson’s portrayal of Joan (although the extend of Joan being shown as a warrior in The Messenger is debatable).

                                               Movie poster from Besson's film Lucy (2104)

Overall Besson has directed numerous works, many of which do not focus on strong central leads (like the Taken movies for example). However, there remain interesting parallels between The Messenger, The Lady, and Lucy that become apparent when critically viewing the films. If anyone has seen either The Lady or Lucy I urge you to comment below your thoughts on the effectiveness of comparing either film to The Messenger!

Below are two links to view both trailers for The Lady and Lucy 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMYAzQC3UjI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVt32qoyhi0

Joan of Arc: A Cartoon

After I watch Evan's blog of the animated Joan series, I wanted to see how others were depicting her as a cartoon so i googled "animated Joan of arc" and this image came up. Interestingly enough, i am not surprised. 

lets starts with the three details that are accurate based off of this cartoon:

1. A young teenage Joan appears to be in her early teens started to hear voices. We know this because of the image has her kneeling and looking up into the "light".

2. She was in battle based off of her armor.

3. She was executed and burnt at the stake.

Now the three details that are NOT accurate:

1. As a child, her hair probably was not that short and cut like a boy.

2. She certainly was not wearing a dress with a high slit on the side while being executed. 

3. Her hair was not that long whenever she went into battle. 

Are there any other parts of the image that you find inaccurate or accurate?

Why do we have such a fascinating of portraying Joan as a sexual and feminine character? 

Source:

Google Images 

Animated Joan

This is a cartoon story of Joan.  After watching a few episodes I found many inaccuracies.  Although some of the episodes were rather interesting to watch.  In the youtube link below, Joan meets the Dauphin.  And with her is another girl named Leanne.  I could not find all the episodes chronologically so I missed what her connection with Joan is.

This small animated series is interesting but should not be taken at face value.  In another episode there is a Digimon like character that is half lion, half man.  But it is interesting to see another female warrior fighting with Joan in this mystical land.  Perhaps it will make the Hundred Year War more interesting to young learners.  But is the pro of being “more interesting” worth the cost of facts?

I found the series to be entertaining but I’m troubled that some might think Joan had a female companion by her side fighting.  I doubt anyone would believe a half man, half lion figure fought in that time.  Perhaps I’m wrong and the animated series will encourage viewers to do research Joan on their own.  In one clip she falls into a seemingly endless abyss.

 

Do you think facts should be sacrificed for entertainment?

After watching one of or both of the clips, what did you think of cartoon Joan?

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McsmZK7itXg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvqkP1_DZxE

Joan: Not in Fire, but Arcade Fire

Recently, I randomly came across a song by Arcade Fire called Joan of Arc. Interestingly enough, the song does frequently make clear references to Joan’s narrative, even somewhat painting a timeline of major events within the lyrics. For instance, the song refers to Joan’s voices in the beginning, stating:

             You had a vision they couldn't see so

They put you down

               But everything that you said would happen

                It came around

This specifically invokes the fact that Joan predicted (via God) the victory at Orleans. It immediately calls up the idea of Joan telling her interrogators at Poitiers, “take me to Orleans, I will show you the signs for which I have been sent” (Pernoud 56). One can also hear some of the assertiveness that Joan utilized to address her interrogators echoed in the lyrics, if somewhat different in effect. The song goes on to both incorporate mentions of Joan’s burning and the cutting of her hair. The song even plays on the idea that Joan was abandoned by the French, stating:

                But where were they when they called your name

 And they lit the fire?

Additionally, on the same note, (actually reminiscent of the way in which The Messenger portrays Joan’s lack of support from King Charles after her capture) the song repeats:

                First they love you

                Then they kill you

Of course, the purpose of such lyrics is not simply to relay Joan history and the words hold their own meaning within the song. However, it is interesting that the song, in a fairly direct fashion, centers its initial theme upon Joan, using her story to tell its own.

Here are just the lyrics:

http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/arcadefire/joanofarc.html

 

Here is the band performing the song live: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpDYEreUkP8&noredirect=1

A Timid Joan?

    Currently we are watching the film The Messenger which tells the story of Joan of Arc in an ominous manner. Luc Besson the director of the film has taken Joan's story and focused on the dark elements within it, some that have no record of ever having occurred. While the film is entertaining one element that strongly resonated with me was Milla Jovovich's portrayal of Joan in the scene where she meets Charles at Chinon.
     This is the first scene in which viewers see Joan as a teenager, although Jovovich looks much older than the age of eighteen. Regardless of her looks, the manner in which Jovovich enters the room where Charles is hiding amongst his supporters, is of note. Jovovich is timid, even scared by her surroundings. Her eyes dart around the room and it is obvious that Jovovich is portraying the idea that Joan was nervous and perhaps even afraid of meeting Charles. What are your opinions on this?
     From what we have read of Joan and those who witnessed her first encounter with Charles, I have envisioned Joan as strong and determined. I imagine her walking into the room with a purpose and immediately finding Charles within the crowd. Since many of the sources reference the persistence and determination of Joan, why do you think Besson choose to depict Joan's encounter with Charles with Jovovich looking timid, nervous, and afraid? Could it possibly have something to do with aiding in the purpose of trying to make Jovovich seem younger to present Joan as a young, naive girl?
    Timidness is also shown in the scene in which Joan has arrived at Orleans and is in a meeting with the captains of the French army. Jovovich is dressed in armor which is historically accurate but when the captains refuse to listen to her she yells and throws what I would consider a mild "temper-tantrum." I cannot recall a moment in the sources we have read that Joan loses her self-control at such a level simply because she is frustrated. But what is striking is that after her mild "fit of frustration", Jovovich's eyes again dart around the room in a frantic manner, making her look timid yet again. I have come to see Joan as never being timid in any event in which she was discussing matters of war. Do you think this reference back to timidness is Besson's way of showing the youth Joan had while at Orleans?
    While I know this is a small matter within the film I do think it is worth mentioning. Have any of you seen Joan as being timid in either the meeting with Charles or while at Orleans? If not, why then do you think Besson choose to have Jovovich look timid in these key moments of retelling the story of Joan of Arc?

Works Cited

Besson, Luc. The Messenger. Perf. Milla Jovovich. Gaumont, 1999. DVD