Movies relating to our planning stage: Mother Joan of the Angels

Summary: Mother Joan of Angels is a 1961 polish drama about demonic possession, based upon a novel called 'Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz'. The movie is set in the seventeenth century and begins as Father Suryn goes to investigate a seemingly possessed convent. As he embarks on his work, the Father comes across the most possessed mother in the convent, Mother Joan. Father Suryn must descend into the depths of hell in order to save her soul and in doing so, he will be condemned to darkness. The reason why I chose to anylise this film is due to the fact that the supernatural themes and the seventeenth century setting relate directly to our film about witches. As well as this, the fact that the film was set in the sixties and focuses more upon technique than actual budget is better for us and we can derive inspiration.

1) Main movie titles: The movie starts with an old indent and is followed shortly after by a high angle shot of a priest worshipping on the ground, setting the religious theme for the entire film with the audience from the very start. The main title is followed by this in a white, eerie font. The white stands out from the dark grey tones in the background, making it easier for the audience to see, as well as this the white colour may be relating to how pure the religion is meant to be, creating an overall sense of irony as the film was banned for blasphemous themes. The creepy text relates directly to the supernatural side of the film and so, it works stylistically. The rest of the titles are shown in the same font and the shot stays the same for approximately two minutes. Then the movie begins.

2) Shot types: At the very beginning of the movie, there is a high angle shot of a worshipping priest. This is a dominating shot type to use and it therefore directly mirrors the fact that the priest is succumbing to a God. The priest then gets up with a Downward panning shot and there is a zoom in leading to a close up on his face. After this, there is a medium shot which shows the priest with some shadow behind him. This makes me think of a very iconic shot from German expressionist film, Nosferatu and it sets an ominous tone for the audience. A tracking shot of the priest is then followed by a close up to a window, possibly symbolising small town claustrophobia. As the windows open we can see an establishing shot of the town with rule of thirds and possibly depth of field. There are strong hints of expressionism in this movie and the camera shots, angles and techniques have been used to their full potential, claiming many awards over the years.




3) Music/Sound: The movie is in polish, however it is very clear that the priest is praying at the start, establishing the religious theme. He speaks in whispers which are almost seemingly frightened, setting an ominous tone once again. The next form of sound is a bell which is in sync with the priests steps towards the camera, which is ultimately building tension. The sound is asynchronous and tells us that there is a church somewhere near. After this is the synchronous sound of the window open, followed by a man shouting off screen. This leads to a downwards tilt o that we see the man and his horses. Clearly he is offering a trade and this links us back to the seventeenth century setting.

4) Mise en scene: The mise en scene in this film is very basic as in keeping with the minimalistic views of religion. The use of lighting creates definite shadow and depth, presenting an almost expressionistic feel. The costume is that of traditional Polish monks and nuns, as well as the villagers. Everything is in-keeping with the time in which the film is set.

5) Codes and conventions: Generally this film follows the conventions of a period drama. The seventeenth century setting is conveyed truthfully and authentically throughout by the use of mise en scene and sound. The camera angles along with numerous other techniques subtly convey the supernatural references all throughout the film, making it a classic. However, it is fair to say that the film definitely did challenge codes and convention at this time by being so outspoken. It was banned in many countries after its original release and is still banned in some for being blasphemous. It takes the codes and conventions of a supernatural drama to new extremes by showing religion and possession side by side.

6) Target audience and social groups: This film clearly wasn't intended for children due to the fact that it has been banned for many years. As well as this, social groups with a strong relegious background would find the supernatural themes in this movie blasphemous. Therefore, I believe this movie was made for a minority of people who aren't offended by the challenging nature of this film and therefore, it can certainly be called an 'independent' film. Nowadays, it has become fashionable to watch old black and white movies by a social group who call themselves 'hipsters' which may lead to more viewing in recent years. The film company is "KADR" which is Polish and the movie is in polish as well and has only been translated recently into English, therefore the Polish and English are the only two groups that this film is suitable for.