Of doom and gloom

Season Of The Witch (2011)
Certified: 14
Duration: 98 minutes
Directed by: Dominic Sena
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Ron Perlman, Claire Foy, Stephen Campbell Moore, Robert Sheehan, Christopher Lee
KRS release

Season of the Witch is a down-scaled Roger Corman-styled Dark Ages fantasy epic. While anyone who knows me knows how much I am a sucker for B-Movies and exploitation films, Season of the Witch never has that kind of appeal to give it cult status.

There are some films that despite being so bad, they are actually good. The fascination with such films lies in that the fact that despite their limited resources and all their inadequacies, they still exert enough charm and charisma. Sadly, Season of the Witch never rises above being a stereotypical doom-and-gloom-mediaeval-age-mix-with-fantasy/horror romp.

The film is set during the Crusades, in Styria (Austria?), in a time of witchcraft and fervent religious sentiments. Behmen (Nicolas Cage) and Felson (Ron Perlman) are two veteran knights who have now lost all faith in the Church, especially when they see innocent women and children being killed in the name of religion.

They decide to desert and we find them one month later going through a plague-ravaged land. They are eventually captured but a cardinal (Chrisopher Lee), who is afflicted by the plague, convinces them to take a young girl (Claire Foy) who is accused of witchcraft to a town where she will be judged by wise monks; in return they will once again be granted their freedom. Along for the ride are Dbelzaq (Stephen Campbell Moore), who believes the girl is evil; Hagamar (Stephen Graham), a swindler and their guide; Eckhart (Ulrich Thomsen), a knight who has lost his wife and daughters to the plague; and Kay (Robert Sheehan), an altar boy who aspires to knighthood.

On their journey they must cross ramshackle bridges, go through foggy forests, battle wolves and face other Dark Age kind of dangers while at the same time trying to decide if the girl is evil or not. Mr Cage is woefully inadequate in his role. Sprouting lines that reek of modern times, his performance and that of most of the cast is simply hilarious.

Mr Perlman’s character is stereotypical of the buddy movie but it was fun seeing him head-butting knights wearing helmets into oblivion.

Christopher Lee as the plague-infested cardinal is simply unrecognisable

The film is set in a depressing atmosphere as it is full of plague-infested monstrosities, dirty characters and filthy surroundings.

Overall the film takes itself too seriously, when it is such a blatant muddle, and the CGI finale is a huge disappointment.

The whole journey through foggy forests and packs of wolves never reaches the interest that such fantasy voyages seem to evince.

The film’s direction is uneasy in its mix of fantasy, historical epic and horror with the resulting greyish film not appeasing either fan base.

This could have been a terribly bad movie to enjoy, a guilty pleasure, however Season of the Witch is just ripe for the inevitable mud-slinging that will be coming its way.