The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)

An abbreviated biopic—the film focuses on Joan of Arc's last tortured hours—Carl Theodor Dreyer's silent masterpiece was lost twice in a fire before an original print was discovered in a janitor's closet in 1981. It's a beautiful and intimate film. As Roger Ebert writes, "There is not one single establishing shot...[it] is filmed entirely in closeups and medium shots." Rarely since has a film lingered over the face of its lead (Renee Jeanne Falconetti) with such single-minded obsession.