Seventh Seal, The (1957) - Synopsis

As the Black Death continues to wipe out the population of Europe, Knight Antonius Block (Max Von Sydow) returns from the Crusades, disillusioned and worn. When suddenly Death appears before him, he asks for the chance to live, proposing a game of chess to decide his fate.
The knight takes his squire, a troupe of traveling players and a deaf and dumb girl under his protection as the game is played out. One by one Death exacts his toll, and it is up to Block to stall his opponent for as long as possible if he is to help save the lives of those he is trying to protect.
All the while, the villages and towns about them fall further into ruin and religion takes a stranglehold on those desperate for a means of survival. They meet many examples of fear, superstition, cruelty and suffering along the way - a troop of flagellants, a seminary student turned thief and a young girl about to be burned at the stake as a witch.

At last they reach the knight’s castle where his wife awaits him. But the game is over and Death has won. After upsetting the pieces in order to give his family time to escape, the knight and those he has met on his way through the countryside, are lead off and join the Dance of Death.