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Her existence was a secret; her name was erased from the history books. Nevertheless, the life of Johanna, who led the Catholic Church as Pope John Anglicus in the 9th century, became a legend.
Sönke Wortmann (“Germany - A Summer’s Fairytale”, “The Miracle of Bern”) brings Donna Woolfolk Cross’s worldwide bestseller to the screen as a gripping historical epic. In a long-past era, a woman fearlessly confronts bigotry and a religious patriarchy, guided by her faith and tempted by her love. Alongside Johanna Wokalek (“The Baader Meinhof Complex”), the international star cast includes John Goodman (“Evan Almighty”, “The Big Lebowski”) as Pope Sergius, David Wenham (“Australia”, “300”, “The Lord of the Rings”) as Gerold, and Anatole Taubman (“James Bond 007 - Quantum of Solace”) as Johanna’s adversary Anastasius.
Plot: In 814 AD, Johanna is condemned to a life as a woman. Her path seems predetermined: work, have children and die young. But Johanna rebels against her strict father and the rules of the Church, and stands up for her convictions and her faith. She senses that her destiny is different, that God is showing her another path. But the price is high.
In Dorstadt, Johanna attends the cathedral school and meets Count Gerold, a nobleman at the bishop’s court. Their friendship becomes love. When Gerold goes to war, Johanna remembers her destiny. But as a woman, she cannot reach her goal. Johanna makes a momentous decision: under the name Brother Johannes, she enters the Benedictine monastery of Fulda disguised as a man and lives there as a skilled and respected physician. When her true identity is in danger of being exposed, she flees to Rome. There she meets Gerold again and realizes that she can no longer deny one thing: her love.
Johanna rises ever higher in the Church hierarchy, the danger of discovery grows ever greater, and she feels increasingly strongly that she must decide: does she want to give her heart to God or to a man? But she has no choice. When Pope Sergius dies, Johanna is elected as his successor. Her feelings for Gerold, however, are stronger than her fear of being exposed - but Johanna’s enemies are only waiting for an opportunity to overthrow her …
Director: Sönke Wortmann
Cast: Johanna Wokalek, David Wenham, John Goodman, Iain Glen, Edward Petherbridge, Jördis Triebel, Anatole Taubman, Alexander Held, Claudia Michelsen, Oliver Nägele and many others.
Producers: Martin Moszkowicz, Oliver Berben
Co-producers: Herman Weigel, Norbert Sauer, Faruk Alatan, Edmon Roch
Screenplay: Heinrich Hadding & Sönke Wortmann, based on the novel by Donna Woolfolk Cross
POPE JOAN is a German-Italian-Spanish co-production by Constantin Film with Medusa Film, Ikiru Films, UFA Filmproduktion and NDR / WDR / SWR / MDR / DEGETO.
