Title: Black Death (2010)
Historical Horror. The genre just has a decidedly disgusting ring to it, not in the favorable sense mind you. It's a sub-genre that almost screams of trying to hard, when it seems like the elements would flow together. The history of mankind is littered with horrendous, stupefying, startling events. Seems ripe for the picking. Though, as with most things, the easier things appear, the harder they are to piece together. In 2011, I myself have barred witness to 2 films, both historical horror in nature, taking place during the dark ages, surrounding themselves with possible witchcraft pertaining to the Black Plague, and the men of god who deal with the sussing out of things. No 2 films, so closely matching on paper, could ever, ever be as different. On one side is "Season of the Witch", a film I do not wish anyone to see (the less said about monks transforming into zombies the better). The other is "Black Death", by Christopher Smith, the director of such genre efforts, "Severance", and "Creep".
The greatest strength of "Black Death" comes in the form of its characterization. Sure not everyone is made 3-dimensional, but every character has his moment, and are acted in a style both refreshing and missed. This is to say the film has everything one would want (action, gore, magic, horses), but doesn't forget that you are going to spend 90+ minutes, where people have to eventually talk. Talk they do, at great lengths about religion, family, honor. This is a true "men-on-a-mission" film, men with a goal, as well as purpose worth dying for. The film opens in 1348 (I believe, those years blend together), the plague has swept the land, killing thousands indiscriminately. A young monk offers his services to the immortally bad-ass Sean Bean, who elevates any dark ages piece, to guide him to a village, that is said to have been, as of yet, untouched by the pestilence. Though this band, hired by the Bishop, isn't going to see god's work in the town, word has spread that a demon is held up and worshiped there in his steed. Less be said beyond that, for this is a film that is quick, sometimes terse, certainly visceral, but every part of it an experience. Smith's direction here goes from simply engaging an audiences gag reflexes, to inflicting pain on their mind, which is to say, "think".
The movie surprised me in its stark briskness, that could be due to the fact that it was a smaller budgeted film, or it could be due to the fact that Smith was aware that most audiences knew rudimentary information about the period of the film, and that it was best to move along with the actual story. Monk has conflict of conscious, the band of mercenaries of god have varied checkered paths, nothing is at it seems.
Through out the film, I found myself thinking about "Season of the Witch", wondering where a film goes so wrong. Here before me was a film that didn't skimp on the visceral, both mental and meat, whilst not betraying history, insulting the audience or having a character walk around with a non-appropriate timed accent. The question can be raised, is it simply the desire to make more money that can rob a film of it's intellectual ideas. Can't audiences plunk down their hard-earned money to see a film that has people pontificating intellectually, soundly, and then have something blow-up in the background? 2010 found something in a form of that, with "Inception", though at times it felt as if Christopher Nolan was holding back ever so slightly, not to bite the hand that forked over so much money to him. "Black Death" though, feels as if it's being cast aside, not only because it's being sent out to a world littered with DTV fantasies, but that it was never given a chance to prove its worth. Throughout the world, where they actually appreciate films? Sure. Yet North American distribution is now a days, akin to being drafted in the first round, it doesn't mean that you're better than anyone, it just meant the loudest people wouldn't stop talking about you for 2 seconds, to hear how this lesser known individual is most decidedly better.
Perhaps this is to be the true use of the internet, and the merry band of internet film critics. Let us stand up for the "true" underdog, the film that is worth your time, and effort, to find and enjoy. I'm not speaking of an old film, a classmate found a clip of online because 50 other sites said that one scene was funny. I mean films that truly deserve to be enjoyed, passed around and discussed. The way we all used to before the internet, and on demand, and downloading.......there was a point in time that people paid for bootlegs, because they were legitimately rare. This film, had it come out in that time, I would have paid greatly for.
This is a film where people discuss religions, the ideas behind them, following blindly. It discusses different people of different gods, discussing who is right and who is wrong. It is a film that then says that the victor, may not be who you would first expect. It asks how far you are willing to go to survive, to fight for what you believe in, and how much of your life, is really in your own hands. It's not an amazing film, it's a very rather good one, but we live in a time, where such things seem to be rather rare.
**** out of *****
(pssst.....click on that link up top, you can rent it from amazon)
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