Abstract

 How do the arts deal with philosophical and theological ideas of good and evil? Can cinema contribute to the understanding of the so-called darkest times of humanity? From a scientific point of view, the Middle Ages (Dark Ages) were, in fact, a period of great development, with regard, for example, to the branches of ancient optical science - the theories of light and vision -, knowledge that was a decisive legacy for the innovation of artistic representation and, later, for the emergence of photography and cinema. Actually, the former epithet – dark ages – has a mainly sociocultural and political basis in the Western world, insofar as there have been centuries of great turmoil and pessimism, both associated with wars, plagues and persecutions, especially by the Inquisition. The inquisitive process of Joan of Arc (c. 1412–1431) is, in this context, an example of a historical narrative that reflects the moral, political, and religious imperatives of the Middle Ages. But cinema’s act of uncovering the past is also a way of understanding our present. Given this, my aim is to discuss and analyze the films: The Trial of Joan of Arc (R. Bresson, France, 1962) and Destiny (Y. Chahine, Egypt/France, 1997) in light of the historical events that shape their narratives, using as conceptual references the art of cinema and the idea of evil in medieval philosophy and in the present day.