Review of Black Death (2010) by Jack P — 05 Dec 2013

I loved this movie from start to finish. Now what the preview shows and what you get are slightly different. Not as action paced as it seems. And I'm completely ok with that. I had high hopes for Black Death and was not disappointed.

The gore felt a little underplayed (almost feels like they wanted more but maybe budget constraints) but it's left unfocused because I was caught up in everything else. The script placed greater emphasis on the story's themes of faith, religion, superstition and love.

It is this emphasis, along with the various twists in the plot, which make the choices faced by the characters in the third act of the movie so very interesting. The first half of this movie felt like Apocalypse Now.

Going off with a band of men to find and kill evil. And the closer they get the more hell appears. Then the last act was all Wicker Man. Forget that Nic Cage piece of shit. I'm talking about dancing naked Britt Ekland Wicker Man.

Not only because of the central theme of a devout Christian confronting something terrible which attempts to challenge and undermine his own beliefs, but also because of the cold, bleak cinematography reminiscent of a seventies horror movie.

The entire production is nicely directed and Smith utilizes his horror knowledge to keep a constant and oppressive threat running throughout the film, regardless of the scene, to maximum effect. Every scene you feel something is lurking behind a tree or in the fog.

Everybody in the cast does a wonderful job and Sean Bean proves again he is meant to hold a sword in everything he does. Eddie Redmayne does well in the central role and manages to make his character's personal journey both interesting and believable, whilst Carice van Houten is also memorable in an important role during the second half of the movie.

Highly recommended if you like period pieces or atmospheric horror. Especially of the English variety.