US Trailer For Christopher Smith's BLACK DEATH

Need to wash the bad taste of Dominic Sena's Season Of The Witch out of your mouth? Then may I recommend Christopher Smith's Black Death, a film dealing with very similar subject matter soon to make a belated appearance on US screens - it has already released in its native UK and precedes Season Of The Witch by a considerable margin - and which is, actually, you know, good.

The year is 1348. Europe has fallen under the shadow of the Black Death. As the plague decimates all in its path, fear and superstition are rife. In this apocalyptic environment, the church is losing its grip on the people. There are rumors of a village, hidden in marshland that the plague cannot reach. There is even talk of a necromancer who leads the village and is able to bring the dead back to life. Ulric (Sean Bean), a fearsome knight, is charged by the church to investigate these rumors. He enlists the guidance of a novice monk, Osmund (Eddie Redmayne) to lead him and his band of mercenary soldiers to the marshland, but Osmund has other motives for leaving his monastery. Their journey to the village and events that unfold take them into the heart of darkness and to horrors that will put Osmunds faith in himself and his love for God to the ultimate test.

Better script, better acting, better action, better scares and worlds better direction. And all of it delivered on a fraction of the budget of it's big Hollywood counterpart. If you must see one plague era action horror film this year - and you should - this is the one you should see.

The new US trailer has just arrived on Apple. Check it out.