Black Death

Wanting something grim and dark, I sat down and watched:

Black Death (2010)

Starring Eddie Redmayne, Sean Bean, Carice van Houten and Tim McInnerny, this gruesome little tale is directed and co-written by Christopher Smith.

The year is 1348 and the Black Death is busy turning Europe into a pestilential soup. Our hero Osmund (Redmayne), a young novice, sends his secret girlfriend away so that she can be safe from the plague. He is torn whether to stay in the monastery or go with her as he is in love. He begs God for a sign and gets one in the shape of Ulrich (Bean), an emissary from the bishop, dressed in black armor. Ulrich is on a mission to investigate a remote village that has been spared the horrors of the plague. This is of course suspicious as they might be devil worshipers, witches or even necromancers. Ulrich demands a monk as a guide and Osmund volunteers.

Thus our young novice sets out with a brutal band of mercenaries turned witch hunters in the service of the church. On the way to the village, some dark and grim things happen and once they arrive, more dark and grim things happen. There is a plague on after all so what else can one expect especially once the witch hunters roll into town?

I won't spoil anything including whether Sean Bean dies which he tends to do a lot of in his performances.

Black Death is essentially a dark fairy tale more than a historical set piece and seen as such it is pretty good. It is well made within the budget they had, and the actors, scenery and props are good. Everything is believable within the confines of the movie. If you make the mistake of stepping back and getting too critical or even demanding historical verisimilitude, then that is on you. Black Death is fantasy set in our world and is better for it. I've seen my fair share of movies that pretend to be historically correct and factual when they are not, and I prefer the movie to consciously step away from that and just indulge in some nasty fun.

Speaking of nasty fun, Black Death has its fair share. Brutal fights, plague victims, execution etc. Most is well done but I must nitpick a bit and complain that the fights are filmed with a lot of shaky cam, which is never a good thing. Despite this little annoyance the fights felt gruesome and cruel like a fight to the death should be.

So, do I recommend this movie? To fans of the grim, dark and brutish, yes I do. It's not a movie for the easily shocked or squeamish so be mindful of that. If you are playing or going to play Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay this is a must watch and for everyone else use your judgment. Black Death is not a masterful movie, but it is well made and does what it sets out to do with style. It's not a classic of the horror/action genre and there are better witch hunter movies out there, but for what it is, Black Death is worth watching.

That's that and all that. Join me again next time and until then, have a great and safe week!