Whether the story of Pope Joan is myth or history is probably left to church historians, but it’s a great yarn and has plenty of potential there for poking fun at the Catholic church, the inconsistencies of Christian theology and patriarchal pretensions to superiority. The film Pope Joan is based on a book by American author Donna Woolfolk Cross titled Pope Joan: A Novel published in 1997, which was popular among readers of historical romances at the time. The film is a European co-production featuring German and UK actors and uses English dialogue.
The film had a difficult time getting produced, and it is now not hard to see why. Despite a number of fine actors taking part in the project, there is a lack of any immediately recognizable big name. In addition, while going for an epic structure, it has clearly been hampered by lack of money, and some of the big set piece scenes look like they were put together in a hurry with a rent-a-crowd of extras in an assortment of any costumes that could be found at short notice.
The story is about Johanna (Johanna Wokalek), the bright daughter of a village priest (Iain Glen), a bigoted and violent man with a narrow view of Christianity and a strong belief in the subjugation of women. Her mother, from the recently converted lands of Eastern Europe, has an adherence to the new religion that is only skin deep.
Photo courtesy of Catchplay
Johanna learns about healing plants from her still largely pagan mother, and acquires literacy from her brothers, behind her father’s back. An itinerant teacher (Edward Petherbridge) gives her some encouragement, and despite the best efforts of her father to prevent her further education, she finds her way to a cathedral school at the whim of a degenerate bishop, where she learns much, but also faces endless humiliation from her instructor, who resents her presence in the male-dominated world over which he presides. Here she meets Gerold, (David Wenham, who played Faramir in the Lord of the Rings trilogy), who begins as her guardian and very nearly becomes her lover.
War and separation break up this incipient romance, and to survive, Johanna dresses as a man and, using a letter of introduction intended for her brother, takes a place in a monastery where she quickly becomes respected for her knowledge of healing. Through one incident after another, Johanna, now renamed Johannes Anglicus, finds herself a doctor and later confidant of Pope Sergius, and becomes involved in the political intrigues surrounding the breakup of the Carolingian empire.
The story is episodic, and while there are many interesting moments in the more than two hours of the movie, the structure is too loose and the characterizations too shallow to make the film come together as a coherent whole. Although Johanna Wokalek does a fine job in the title role, her character is not at the center of the story. This place has been usurped by a rather crude feminist sensibility, giving the film a didactic tone that undermines our involvement in the story. Author Donna Woolfolk Cross is quoted in Moving Pictures magazine as saying as much: “The theme of my novel is female empowerment through learning.” This production leaves you in no doubt of this mission statement.
In addition to this ideological concern, the need to fit in the whole life story of Johanna, from early childhood to death, gives the storytelling in Pope Joan a rather rushed quality as it gallops through the many incidents of Cross’ 400-page book. David Wenham’s Gerold is the strong silent hero recognizable from dozens of romantic novels, and very little effort is given to making the world of the Vatican, with its bitter intrigues and absurd theological debates, come alive. John Goodman is always on the verge of playing Pope Sergius for laughs, giving the satire of church politics a facile sheen.
For all its good intentions, there are too many false notes for Pope Joan to be a very satisfactory experience, though this hasn’t prevented the Vatican from getting all hot and bothered about the film, with L’Avvenire, the newspaper of the Italian Bishops’ Conference, describing it as a “hoax” and of having “extremely limited vision.”
POPE JOAN (Die Papstin)
DIRECTED BY:
Sonke Wortmann
STARRING:
Johanna Wokalek (Johannes Anglicus), David Wenham (Gerold), John Goodman (Pope Sergius), Iain Glen (Village Priest) Edward Petherbridge (Aesculapius), Anatole Taubman (Anastasius), Nicholas Woodeson (Arighis)
RUNNING TIME:
149 MINUTES
TAIWAN RELEASE:
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