A new biopic – if that’s the word – of the ninth-century Englishwoman who allegedly disguised herself as a man and eventually sat on St. Peter’s Throne has attracted the controversy the film’s producers were surely hoping for. The Vatican, which has insisted for centuries that the entire story of Pope Joan is a slander invented by Protestants, is predictably angry about the new film; the Church’s displeasure has, predictably, helped the movie become a big hit in Italy.