Director Otto Preminger's filming of George Bernard Shaw's classic play about the Maid of Orleans has everything - big stars, a script based on a fine play, solid production values. What it doesn't have is a strong central character. Newcomer Jean Seberg, reputedly picked from 18,000 young hopefuls, is the weak core that lets the whole film down. The real Joan may have been a young, naive country girl, but she obviously had plenty of steel and determination leading the French army. However, none of this is apparent in Seberg's wishy-washy performance. A stellar cast that includes Richard Widmark Richard Todd, John Gielgud, Anton Walbrook and Felix Aylmer fails to overcome this profound central drawback. Disappointing. The earlier version of the story starring Ingrid Bergman, although itself flawed, is far superior.

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