Christopher Smith
Black Death

Year of Our Lord 1348. The plague rages through England with one of its most terrifying waves. Everything is in decay, bodies are piled up in villages, people die of hunger, of hardship, they die from the Black Death. In this seemingly infernal world, there is a village that appears immune to the epidemic. Ulric (Sean Bean) is tasked by the archbishop to lead his group of mercenaries to discover that village and especially the "necromancer" who with his magical arts would be protecting the population. The young monk Osmund (Eddie Redmayne) will act as a guide, in search of someone, of himself, and his faith.

Sebastian Edschmid's cinematography delivers a leaden and dark film, where the sun is more a hope than a presence. In this atmosphere that successfully evokes the High Middle Ages, Christopher Smith (already the director of the slasher "Severance") crafts a film that skillfully navigates through the various environments of "genres": it is not pure horror but seems to resemble it, it is not epic/fantasy but possesses some of its characteristics, it is not a drama but appears so in several sequences. A blend that makes the feature film more "varied," but above all more successful, confirming how Smith manages to create films that are never banal (in this sense, it is interesting to rediscover the "political" and ironic horror of "Severance").

The world of "Black Death" is shrouded in the miasma of a pessimism reflected in a "everyone against everyone" mentality, well exemplified in the final half-hour. The two parties, those who believe in God and those with a "pagan" vision, act in the same way. The use of violence is the means to achieve one's goal: afterlife beliefs are just a staged act, a superstructure that has little to do with reality. There is no salvation in this world, because the fanaticism of both sides overwhelms any possibility of human coexistence. A perhaps stereotypical message but one that is as relevant as ever...

Shaping this story are two actors who will also star in the famous television series "Game Of Thrones": the dear old Sean Bean (remember Boromir?) and Carice Van Houten, the Melisandre from the aforementioned series.

It's clear that this is a low-budget movie, and this is certainly not a bad thing. Overall, "Black Death" has its own narrative line, and while not being an entertainment product of exceptional qualities, it still manages to assert itself, thanks also to a compelling and original plot. Once again, England stands out for a renewed, invigorated horror that is unafraid to take risks.

"We have the tools, we have the will, and now we're heading to Hell. But God will come with us."