Priest

Movie: Priest

  • Director: Scott Charles Stewart
  • Release Date: May 2011
  • Writers: Scott Charles Stewart, Min-Woo Hyung
  • Run Time: 87
  • Genre: Action, Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Tagline: Vampire Killer

Review: Based on the long running Korean comic of the same name, Priest is one of those films thats been stuck in development hell for the last few years, running a gauntlet of director and lead actor changes and more recently, coping with a series of release date delays in order to facilitate the inevitably shoddy post production conversion to 3D thats currently so beloved of mainstream cinema.

The added dimension isnt going to win any prizes for the most part it is relatively pointless, and the world in which Priest takes place is not interesting enough to require any additional depth.

The ever reliable Paul Bettany stars as the titular character. Stoic to the end, hes not your typical priest more a deadly weapon, specialising in martial arts and weapons skills that make him the perfect killer. He exists in a time where vampires are a horrifying reality, battling humans for control of a conflict ridden, barren wasteland punctuated only by large, soulless, church controlled cities where humans live only for their faith and an honest days labour.

You dont watch films like this expecting an Oscar winning tale, and action wise, Priest is fairly solid, packing in a series of high octane fights and chases for its duration. Helmer Scott Stewart knows where to put a camera in order to maximise the impact upon the viewer, and the oil slick manner in which everything is filmed shows a director moving away from his previous field as a visual effects specialist and having a decent stab at mastering his craft.

Unfortunately, theres not a lot going on when knives and bullets arent being flung around the supporting cast of Cam Gigandet, Maggie Q and Karl Urban are given next to nothing to do and the dialogue serves only to move the film along to its next set piece. Story wise, its paper thin, and its difficult to care about the motivation of any character when the levels of emotion on display resemble that of Mount Rushmore.

It is also strangely edited 87 minutes is very short for a film with this kind of budget, and theres all manner of blunt cuts that give credence to the theory that there was once a longer, potentially better film here.

So, was Priest worth the wait? Not particularly, but for all its faults, it certainly has promise. Depending on box office performance, it could really benefit from a deeper, beefed up sequel along the lines of Blade II. The good news is that theres plenty of source material available for a return to this mythology its just a shame that its as shallow as the film its spawned.

27 Responses to “Priest”

  1. minerva says:

    You will literally be watching Priest in no time at all if you just eat advantage of this site. The following is what’s probably one of the most part about this internet site rather than all the others. Then, if you are lucky adequate to even discover a location that says you can genuinely watch Priest or watch Priest, you happen to be heading to have one thing that seems like it was filmed with an iPhone…by an individual with Parkinsons. Now, I know you might also be asking if you are going to obtain to become some computer genius to be able to not only watch the movie, but then burn it to a DVD. Do not have a DVD burner? No problem. Obivously I’m talking in future tense just to prove a point, as I already watched the movie. They aren’t heading to charge you for every movie you want to watch, that is certainly great, due to the fact I’m also certain that Priest is not going to become the only movie you happen to be ever heading to desire to see. It isn’t the standard spam you see splattered all more than the web. Watch Priest now!

  2. lorrie says:

    seriously what a great video. I was going to view Priest in the cinema but rather I enjoyed it right here for free

  3. karl says:

    wow just what a excellent film. I was going to watch Priest in the cinema but instead I watched it right here for free of charge

  4. ebony says:

    Priest combines parts of Pocahontas and Braveheart that has a liberal dose of Room Marines into an epic complete that requires practically 3 complete hours to unfold. We could criticise that length, the weak story as well as the hammy dialogue. We could attack its thinly-veiled ecological message or even the frankly bizarre spirituality in its second fifty percent but honestly absolutely nothing can spoil the expertise whereas youre enveloped in it. Plus a massive portion of that could be down with the brilliant use of 3D – which can be both subtle and u nbelievably valu able. Til now, we happen to be creating films with 3D factors, Avatar could be the 1st actually 3D movie and may nicely prove being a belonging to the most substantial points to come about to blockbuster film-making as Priest.

  5. clare says:

    The film Priest is worth it to view. the Priest is so great. It’s a strangely paced film and suffers at times from very long exposition and poorly contrived story lines that seem to be added to no doubt develop the storyline rather than the Priest story that I wanted to see.

  6. curtis says:

    I thought Priest was interesting, it was a new type of thriller movie, and a smart one as well. After that it all went downhill. I saw 3 movies too many. Now I refuse to even watch this movie again, but, apparently there are still people out there that can enjoy a movie like this and I am glad they can.

  7. arnold says:

    The two great things about Priest are the look and the acting. When I say feel I am referring to everything from the costumes and makeup all the way to the photography combining to capture the look of the time perfectly. The soundtrack is also pretty good too as you would expect!

  8. lydia says:

    I agree with you on Priest – the first half hour of it was great, actually. tailed off a bit towards end but still a way better film than it should have been

  9. francisco says:

    This movie was absolutely phenomenal. Already seen it three times. Loved the comics and this was the most satisfying adaptation I’ve ever seen mixed with the directors personal charm and tweaks. Priest was just beautiful to watch and so fun to be a part of as an audience. LOVED IT.

  10. kari says:

    Priest combines parts of Pocahontas and Braveheart that has a liberal dose of Room Marines into an epic entire that requires almost 3 total hours to unfold. We could criticise that length, the weak story along with the hammy dialogue. We could attack its thinly-veiled ecological message or even the frankly bizarre spirituality in its second fifty percent but honestly absolutely nothing can spoil the knowledge though that you are enveloped in it. Including a massive component of thats down towards the brilliant use of 3D – that is both subtle and exceptionally efficient. Til now, we are actually doing films with 3D components, Avatar often is the earliest absolutely 3D movie and may well properly prove to become just one of that most considerable items to come about to blockbuster film-making as Priest.

  11. ross says:

    The two great things about Priest are the feel and the acting. When I say look I am referring to everything from the costumes and makeup all the way to the photography combining to capture the look of the time perfectly. The soundtrack is also pretty good too as you would expect!

  12. leanne says:

    The film Priest is worth it to view. the Priest is so fantastic. It’s a strangely paced movie and suffers at times from very long exposition and poorly contrived story lines that seem to be added to no doubt develop the storyline rather than the Priest story that I wanted to see.

  13. albert says:

    You will literally be watching Priest in no time at all in case you just eat advantage of this site. The following is what is most likely probably the most component about this site rather than all the others. Then, if you will be lucky sufficient to even find a place that says you’ll be able to actually watch Priest or watch Priest, you’re going to have anything that appears like it was filmed with an iPhone…by an individual with Parkinsons. Now, I know you may also be asking if you happen to be going for getting being some pc genius to be able to not merely watch the movie, but then burn it to a DVD. Don’t have a DVD burner? No problem. Obivously I’m talking in future tense just to prove a point, as I already watched the movie. They are not heading to charge you for every single movie you need to watch, that’s great, because I’m also sure that Priest just isn’t heading being the only movie you’re ever heading to want to see. It just isn’t the frequent spam you see splattered all over the web. Watch Priest now!

  14. ada says:

    I thought Priest was interesting, it was a new type of horror movie, and a smart one as well. After that it all went downhill. I saw 3 movies too many. Now I cannot bear to even watch this movie again, but, apparently there are still people out there that can enjoy a movie like this and I am glad they can.

  15. judith says:

    You will literally be watching Priest in no time at all if you just consume advantage of this site. The following is what’s likely the best component about this website rather than all the others. Then, if you are lucky adequate to even find a location that says it is possible to genuinely watch Priest or watch Priest, you might be heading to obtain something that seems like it was filmed with an iPhone…by an individual with Parkinsons. Now, I know you may also be asking if you happen to be going for getting being some pc genius so that you can not just watch the movie, but then burn it to a DVD. Do not have a DVD burner? No problem. Obivously I’m talking in future tense just to prove a point, as I already watched the movie. They are not going to charge you for every single movie you desire to watch, that is great, since I’m also sure that Priest is not heading to become the only movie you happen to be ever going to desire to see. It just isn’t the normal spam you see splattered all more than the web. Watch Priest now!

  16. dona says:

    Priest is a genuinely great movie– disappointing summer aside. It’s more refreshing, perhaps, due to the fact that this season has been so stark, but Priest easily deserves praise all on its own merits rather than by lack of good competition.

  17. sylvia says:

    I thought Priest was interesting, it was a new type of romantic movie, and a smart one as well. After that it all went downhill. I saw 3 movies too many. Now I refuse to even watch this movie again, but, apparently there are still people out there that can enjoy a movie like this and I am glad they can.

  18. evelyn says:

    Priest combines parts of Pocahontas and Braveheart which includes a liberal dose of Room Marines into an epic entire that requires almost 3 total hours to unfold. We could criticise that length, the weak story along with the hammy dialogue. We could attack its thinly-veiled ecological message or even the frankly bizarre spirituality in its second fifty percent but honestly practically nothing can spoil the encounter even when you might be enveloped in it. Including a great aspect of that is definitely down with the brilliant use of 3D – which can be both subtle and amazingly powerful. Til now, we are actually gett ing films with 3D factors, Avatar is a earliest certainly 3D movie and could possibly nicely prove for being just one with the most important factors to take place to blockbuster film-making as Priest.

  19. adela says:

    I thought Priest was interesting, it was a new type of thriller movie, and a smart one as well. After that it all went downhill. I saw 3 movies too many. Now I refuse to even watch this movie again, but, apparently there are still people out there that can enjoy a movie like this and I am glad they can.

  20. leo says:

    The two great things about Priest are the look and the acting. When I say feel I am referring to everything from the costumes and makeup all the way to the photography combining to capture the look of the time perfectly. The soundtrack is also pretty good too as you would expect!

  21. willie says:

    The film Priest is worth it to view. the Priest is so awesome. It’s a strangely paced film and suffers at times from very long exposition and poorly contrived story lines that seem to be added to no doubt develop the storyline rather than the Priest story that I wanted to see.

  22. jodi says:

    I agree with you on Priest – the first half hour of it was great, actually. tailed off a bit towards end but still a way better film than it should have been

  23. roberta says:

    I thought Priest was interesting, it was a new type of romantic movie, and a smart one as well. After that it all went downhill. I saw 3 movies too many. Now I refuse to even watch this movie again, but, apparently there are still people out there that can enjoy a movie like this and I am glad they can.

  24. tommy says:

    The film Priest is worth it to view. the Priest is so great. It’s a strangely paced flick and suffers at times from incredibly long exposition and poorly contrived story lines that seem to be added to no doubt develop the storyline rather than the Priest story that I wanted to see.

  25. willie says:

    You will literally be watching Priest in no time at all should you just take in advantage of this site. Right here is what’s probably one of the most part about this internet site rather than all of the others. Then, if you will be lucky sufficient to even find a location that says you’ll be able to genuinely watch Priest or watch Priest, you will be heading to get a thing that seems like it was filmed with an iPhone…by someone with Parkinsons. Now, I know you’ll also be asking if you might be heading to acquire to be some pc genius so that you can not only watch the movie, but then burn it to a DVD. Do not have a DVD burner? No problem. Obivously I’m talking in future tense just to prove a point, as I already watched the movie. They are not going to charge you for each and every movie you need to watch, that may be great, because I’m also certain that Priest is not heading being the only movie you happen to be ever heading to wish to see. It isn’t the typical spam you see splattered all more than the web. Watch Priest now!

  26. carolyn says:

    I agree with you on Priest – the first half hour of it was great, actually. tailed off a bit towards end but still a way better film than it should have been

  27. jesus says:

    The two great things about Priest are the feel and the acting. When I say feel I am referring to everything from the costumes and makeup all the way to the photography combining to capture the look of the time perfectly. The soundtrack is also pretty good too as you would expect!

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