Well, this was a surprise. Black Death is a historical horror/thriller set in 1349, the year that the Bubonic Plague ravaged and killed most of Europe. The plot follows Osmund, a young monk, who has fallen in love with a young woman named Averill who took refuge in their sanctuary, presumably to escape the plague. But once it starts to overtake his monastery, he sends her on her way to the forest, but vows he will see her again soon. Osmund prays that God will give him a sign, a way to be with her and a way out. Soon, he is recruited to lead a group of soldiers, who are on a mission to find a lone village unaffected by the plague, and possibly housing a necromancer, whose powers include being able to bring the dead back to life.
That's all I can really say about the plot without giving too much away. At first glance, one might dismiss this as just another medieval-themed film with swords, sorcery, and Sean Bean. While we do get a good bit of the former and lot of the latter (I won't say anything about the middle), this is more of a look back on some of the lunacy from the time where humanity was seemingly dropping like flies. It also isn't afraid to question one's beliefs in desperate times, as the conflict between what is right in accordance with "God" and what is right morally (religion or not). It's fairly bloody as well, but nothing that will outright disgust you if you've seen your fair share or horror films before.
Though it's shot rather well and does have a competent script, I do have a couple of complaints. The first one is a bit of a downer, but it just isn't very scary. Yes, it's a well done film, but it won't make you jump in your seat or leave you feeling disturbed like some of the other films I've already reviewed will. The second would be Carice Van Houten. She's a fine actress mind you, but she seemed to be going back and forth on which accent to use for her character. I guess I can forgive her since she's Dutch (and pretty attractive too...god I'm a pig), but it still irked me.
If you have an active Netflix account and/or Netflix streaming, give this one a shot. It's a fairly well done film given that it didn't look like it had a tremendous budget, and the ending was one of the more dark, but appropriate, ones I've seen so far.
Tomorrow, I'm gonna find out if it's safe to go back in the water with THE REEF.
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