British director Christopher Smith made a name for himself with two touted twists on the slasher sub-genre: 2006’s horror-comedy Severance, and 2009’s cryptic murder-mystery Triangle. Now he takes on new ground, leaving the horror – though not the gore – behind with his ambitious period piece Black Death.
Set in the midst of the bubonic plague outbreak, the film centers on a motley crew of Christian soldiers who seek to destroy a devil-worshiping necromancer that’s said to live beyond a perilous marsh. Their guide on this journey is Osmund (the aptly named Eddie Redmayne), a young monk struggling with his faith and searching for his destiny–and his lost lover. Surrounded by the devastation of the plague and its resulting witch hunts (both figurative and literal), Osmund is in turns horrified and amazed by the world outside his monastery. When these bruisers and their boy scout reach the place beyond the marsh, they brace for a brawl. But instead of the notorious town of the damned they’d been promised, they are met with a peaceful village peopled with smiling and healthy pagans. But all is not what it seems! What follows is a series of revelations that present a clumsy argument against faith, positing religion as an incomparable tool for manipulation, cruelty, and revenge. Ultimately, the story is clever in concept, but falls flat largely due to the weak structure provided by screenwriter Dario Poloni (Wilderness).
With its large cast, medieval setting, gruesome effects, and battle sequences, Black Death is a large undertaking for a low-budget director. And while Smith is known for his ability to make a small budget sing, he may have broken off a little more than he was ready to chew here. Black Death’s action sequences stumble, suffering from poor fight choreography, awkward editing, and shaky-cam cinematography that is jarring when paired with the period piece aesthetic. Still, it’s an intriguing story with convincing tough guy portrayals from Sean Bean and company, and one devilishly fun femme fatale played by Dutch film star Carice van Houten (Black Book). While I was admittedly expecting something more inventive from Smith than this mediocre medieval movie provides, it’s still a decent diversion full of machismo and violence. It’s not bad, but it’s far from good.
Black Death opens in limited release March 11th, but there’s a special screening and Q&A with Christopher Smith on March 1st in New York City. (Details here.)
