I watched Black Death and Season of the Witch a week apart, which gives some perspective on what goes right and what goes terribly wrong in both films. They both share a similar plot: during the Black Plague, holy knights (in both movies, Teutonic Knightss judging from their attire) are sent to retrieve a witch who is to be put on trial for her crimes, a crime tied to the plague. In Black Death it's a town that avoids the plague and is rumored to bring the dead back to life; in Season of the Witch it's a witch who is believed to have caused the plague. Black Death features Sean Bean as Teutonic Knight Ulric, responsible for marching to the village to bring back the necromancer.
In need of a guide, Ulric drafts novitiate monk Osmund (Eddie Redmayne) into service. Osmund is in love with Averill (Kimberley Nixon) but has sent her away for fear that she will contract the plague - he joins the quest in the hope of reuniting with her.
Ulric's ratag band of warriors includes Wolfstan (John Lynch), Wolfstan's friend Griff (Jamie Ballard), Dalywag the torturer (Andy Nyman), Mold (Johnny Harris), the mute Ivo (Tygo Gernandt), and chatty Swire (Emun Elliott). This is one of those Seven Samurai-style films where the audience has to connect with the warriors quickly, so they are each given a signature weapon, combat style, or personality tic. This is important because they're probably not going to all survive. Also, it features Sean Bean, so they're all screwed. SPOILER BEAN: It's become an ironic trope that every character Sean Bean plays is a flawed figure that dies heroically to atone for his sins (see Lord of the Rings, Equilibrium, Games of Thrones).
The village, it turns out, is in fact untouched by the plague. Hob (Tim McInnerny) seems like the leader, but Langiva (Clarice van Houten) lurks in the background with her modern ideas and her clean hair and makeup. Something else is going on here: Langiva belongs to a tradition predating Christianity.
Black Death is far more interested in testing its protagonist's souls than it is in telling a compelling tale. As TV Tropes put it, the film pivots on an "idiot ball" - a moment where the character's stupidity fuels the entire plot. The assembled suspicious, hardened warriors do something really stupid that lands them in hot water. They get what they deserve.
What happens next is either a startling revelation or very predictable. Black Death has a lot in common with The Wicker Man in that it features torture, reversed gender roles, and a test of faith in the face of pagan practices. What Black Death brings to the genre is the strengths and weaknesses of the men as they are slowly picked off one by one.
This is not an uplifting film. It's also surprisingly cerebral, discounting one gory combat scene. If you're a fan of Sean Bean (or maybe if you aren't) Black Death is worth watching. Just don't expect to feel good about it later.
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