Black Death

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Black Death

R

2011

1h 42m

Horror

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

72%

Tomatometer

68 Reviews

49%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

During the time of the bubonic plague in 14th-century England, young monk Osmund is recruited by the knight Ulric to lead a group of soldiers through the marshes into a mysterious village, where rumors are spreading that a necromancer is raising plague victims from the dead. Osmund agrees, but he has an ulterior motive—to find Averill, a young woman who has gone missing. Along the way, the group encounters unimagined darkness.

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Critics Consensus

Black Death delivers the fire and brimstone violence its subject matter warrants, while posing some interesting questions of faith and religion.

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Sara Michelle Fetters

MovieFreak.com

Mar 25, 2011

3/4

By not rushing things, by keeping things moving at their own measured pace, Smith gives Poloni's screenplay a chance to breathe and evolve in a way it might not have been able to otherwise.

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Ian Buckwalter

NPR

Mar 12, 2011

7/10

"Going medieval" on your enemies isn't just a figure of speech in Christopher Smith's stylish spatter-horror exercise, which uses desperation-fueled religious fervor to interrogate the intersection of fear and faith.

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Peter Rainer

Christian Science Monitor

Mar 11, 2011

B

There's something here for just about everyone, or at least for everyone who looks back fondly on the similarly themed Wicker Man from 1973.

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Patrick Cavanaugh

The Wolfman Cometh

Sep 20, 2023

3/5

It brings some fresh ideas and blends together unconventional concepts, yet its pacing fails to get you to engage with the material or leave much of a lasting impressing.

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

Jul 31, 2023

3/4

For those willing to stomach harsh realism from a gloomy period in history and confronting notions on religion, Smith has delivered a rewarding film surprisingly bereft of the typical downfalls usually present when mixing horror and history.

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David Harris

Spectrum Culture

Nov 6, 2019

3/5

Black Death's Europe is one of dirt, blood, violence and mist.

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Robert P

@Superbad 3 hrs ago

Black Death is a *3* star Movie!!

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B P

@Bradster69 4 days ago

Not Bad, but Not My Favorite

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Sheree B

@SBrea Jul 29, 2026

I would have loved more character development within the band of men on the mission. And more time exploring the dynamics in the village of the second half. Just an ok movie

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Spencer T

@RT33920487 Jul 20, 2026

Surprisingly exceeded my expectations. Kind of a mix between The Green Knight and The VVitch, although not quite as good either.

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Wayne K

@WayneKelso Apr 27, 2026

As bleak and unforgiving as you’d imagine with the title Black Death, the film is far less about the notorious plague and much more about how people tried to rationalise and deal with it. Most believed it was a punishment from God, because that’s what all natural disasters were blamed on in those times, and as such the remedies were woefully ineffective. I did like how the film demonstrated that humanity was taking its first steps towards combating such problems with practical solutions such as face coverings, quarantine and isolation, even if by accident. It’s a savage and hard to watch movie at times, but it all feels period-appropriate, and welcome to like our rag tag group of antiheroes, despite how unsavoury some may be. It’s not a thriller or a history lessons, it’s a depiction of humanity struggling to find solutions to a problem it doesn’t fully comprehend and showing it’s very worst side in the process. If you have a strong enough stomach, its definitely worth a watch.

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Sandy F.

@NolaGirl Apr 19, 2026

This is an intelligent and thoughtful movie. Well acted by the entire cast and it was well paced. The last scene was a bit of a semi-surprise twist.

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Christopher Smith

Director

Sean Bean

Ulric

Eddie Redmayne

Osmund

Carice van Houten

Langiva

Kimberley Nixon

Averill

John Lynch

Wolfstan

Black Death: Official Clip - We Seek Refuge

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Black Death: Official Clip - His Journey's Finished

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Black Death: Official Clip - I Will Renounce God

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Black Death: Official Clip - You Have No Heart

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Black Death: Official Clip - What is a Necromancer?

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Black Death: Official Clip - I Am Death

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Black Death: Official Clip - Bandit Attack

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Black Death: Official Clip - Crucified

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Black Death: Official Clip - Who Wants to Live?

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Black Death: Official Clip - A Suspected Witch

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Synopsis

During the time of the bubonic plague in 14th-century England, young monk Osmund is recruited by the knight Ulric to lead a group of soldiers through the marshes into a mysterious village, where rumors are spreading that a necromancer is raising plague victims from the dead. Osmund agrees, but he has an ulterior motive—to find Averill, a young woman who has gone missing. Along the way, the group encounters unimagined darkness.

Director: Christopher Smith
Producer: Jens Meurer, Robert Bernstein, Douglas Rae, Phil Robertson
Screenwriter: Dario Poloni
Distributor: Magnet Releasing
Production Co: Ecosse Films
Rating: R (Strong Brutal Violence|Some Language)
Genre: Horror, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 11, 2011, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 14, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $22.0K
Runtime: 1h 42m

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