Grimerlana
Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike
FeistyUpper
If you don't like this, we can't be friends.
Casey Duggan
It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny
Kien Navarro
Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.
Wuchak
RELEASED IN EARLY 2011 and directed by Dominic Sena, "Season of the Witch" chronicles events when two ex-Teutonic Knight crusaders (Nicolas Cage & Ron Pearlman) traveling through Styria in modern-day Austria are enlisted to escort an alleged witch suspected of causing the black death (Claire Foy) to a remote monastery in the mountains for trial and to hopefully stop the devastating plague. Stephen Campbell Moore (Debelzaq), Stephen Graham (Hagamar) and Robert Sheehan (Kay) accompany the Knights. This is basically the American version of "Black Death," a European film released around the same time. Both movies are dark, gritty and brutal in their depictions of Medieval Europe, but "Season of the Witch" is more of a stereotypical blockbuster with modish protagonists, amusing one-liners and CGI-laden climax. "Black Death" is deeper, more thought-provoking and realistic, which is why I give it the edge in overall value (see my review). "Season" is the more conventionally entertaining movie and anyone who appreciates Dark Ages-based flicks are highly encouraged to check it out. Films which come to mind include "In the Name of the Rose" (1986), "Kingdom of Heaven" (2005), "Robin Hood" (2010), "Ironclad" (2011), "King Arthur" (2004), "Dragonslayer" (1981), "Red Riding Hood" (2011), "Tristan + Isolde" (2006) and "Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves" (1991). It's as good, or better, than any of these.The Medieval cinematography (castles, dungeons, villages, dark forests and breathtaking mountains) is mind-blowing and the two protagonists are great with their amusing rapport. Furthermore, Foy is easy-on-the-eyes. Look out for a thrilling rope-bridge crossing a la "Sorcerer" (1977). Although the climax is over-the-top cartoony, the tone up to that point is quasi-realistic. THE MOVIE RUNS 1 hour 35 minutes and was shot in Austria, Hungary and Croatia with reshoots done in Louisiana. WRITERS: Bragi F. Schut. ADDITIONAL CAST: Christopher Lee is almost unrecognizable as the plague-ridden Cardinal D'Ambroise. GRADE: A-/B+
stephenbell-36041
The film starts off well but is completely spoilt by a stupid conclusion. Claire Foy is underused as the "witch" and her part is ignored at the end in a ridiculous finale.
nando1301-1
Talk about bad... This one is so bad that even as a popcorn movie it's not worth a penny!The CGI is worse than in a reasonable video game; the sets are so awfully done that it's laughable... to say the least. The plot? When I played cops and robbers with my friends at age seven we had better ones.Really, to see this kind of crap is only justified in order to appreciate good movies by contrast. A lot of films these days are geared for teen agers and not adults; but this one is an insult to teen-agers, it's impressive for a six year-old at best. If you all you want is to be entertained, that's fine... but this is so badly done that it is only entertaining as a joke; it makes Lord of the Rings seem like an art film.Cage has done a lot of awful pics (and just a couple of good ones); this has got to be one of his worst. Bad acting, production values lower than a tram rail, a script so bad that it makes you ashamed to watch (let alone the guys who wrote it)... This is what gives Hollywood productions a bad name. A waste of time.
schuster_mark
I watch a lot of movies. I've seen a lot of Nick Cage's movies. Some are better than others - but he always seems to deliver "something" in each and every one. He's got this odd, weird - psycho kind of persona that just works in these adventure/fantasy/horror flicks. These kind of films just need the main actor be a tad "off". Trust me, there have been other films were he's been certifiable crazy - and this one pales in comparison in spots - but yet there is still that unmistakable Nick Cage fingerprint.I love Ron Perlman too. The banter and friendship between him and Cage was enjoyable. I love Perlman in the "Hellboy" series. I loved him in this for all the same reasons. It was like "Hellboy", but without all the makeup.I've read in other reviews people didn't like the special effects. I loved them - and thought they were excellent. Nothing about them was distracting - only an asset to the movie.I highly recommend this movie. It's fun, exciting, scary at moments - and well worth a watch.
