15 Years Anniversary Review Of Priest

If you for some reason were asked, what do you remember about the year of 2010 for any particular reason, what would you answer? When i think about the year of 2010 there are especially three things i remember. For example, it was this year when newspapers all over the world reported of the Chile´s Miner Miracle, where a main ramp in the San Jose mine, near Copiapo, Chile, collapsed on August 5th this year. I remember watching a lot on CNN at this time since this was a very big news story, where 33 miners were trapped 2,300 feet underground. Thankfully 33 miners survived and this truly is an amazing story. In 2015 they actually made a film called The 33 based on the events of this miner accident with a great cast such as Antonio Banderas, James Brolin, Gabriel Byrne, Lou Diamond Phillips, Juliette Binoche and many more. I did like this film even though this is the Hollywood version and may not tell everything exactly as it happened. Worth a watch on physical media or streaming, no matter what you prefer. It was in 2010 when American rock band Stone Temple Pilots released their sixth studio album Stone Temple Pilots with vocalist Scott Weiland ( this was his last Stone Temple Pilots studio album before he passed away ). You could tell times have changed since the album did not reach high in many countries in the album charts, doing better in America, Canada and New Zeeland. If you are a an of the band then there are some pretty good songs on here. Speaking of the year 2010 this was the year when director Scott Stewart released his action horror film Legion. Now, this film may not look like anything special from the poster. But i can tell you that this is a fun action horror film set out in the Mojave Desert where The Archangel Michael ( played by actor Paul Bettany ) arrive to a local diner to warn the guests about the evil forces that´s coming towards them. Legion proved that telling religious inspired stories doesn´t have to be boring or too predictable. If you want plenty of action and horror combined in a fun mix, you should watch Legion on streaming or physical media. Just one year later director Scott Stewart released his next film Priest. A film loosely based on the Korean comic of the same name. I remember when this film came out in 2011 and was considered to be a box office flop, an American action horror film with a apocalyptic approach. This year i was reminded it is 15 years ago since Priest hit cinemas worldwide and i felt this would be a good time to revisit Priest with a review of this film. Is this still a enjoyable horror action film or have Priest aged much more than i ever would have expected?

A centuries-long war between humans and vampires devastated the planet´s surface and led to a theocracy under "The Church".  Despite vampires vulnerability to sunlight and humans technological advancements , their strength and speed made them impossible to defeat until humanity sheltered  in walled cities and trained elite warrios, the Priests, who turned the tide. After the war, most vampires werfe killed, while the remained were placed in reservations. After the war, the Clergy abandon sthe surviving Priests, who struggle to integrate into society. Outside the walled cities, some humans seek out a living, free from The Church´s totalitarian control.

If you are not fan ot post apocalyptic films such as The Book Of Eli ( one of my personal favourites in this speciific genre ) then i have a feeling you will not enjoy Priest. Since i am a fan of films of similar films such as The Book Of Eli it isn´t difficult to understand that this is a film in my taste. This film have a lot of positive things going for it, everything from costume design, cool vampire designs but also the design of a futuristic world that reminded me of Ridley Scott´s cult classic Blade Runner, a little bit of Sylvester Stallone´s 1995 film Judge Dredd. In a way you could say that Priest is the biblical version of Blade Runner, where the priests as assassins is a very important detail to understand the plot correctly. The priests headquarters match well with the main plot and looks cool. I might have to add that there is also some scenes that almost feels inspired by Western iconic film maker Sergio Leone where we get similar cinematic scenes like a western tale, except this is a more modern approach in Priest and they still manage to make this combination work. The action scenes are in general fun and reminded me a bit of the Blade franchise, where the vampires are both faster and have a monster look instead of the traditional vampire design. Ok, so one of the issues i have with Priest is actually the lead actor Paul Bettany as Priest. In the action scenes he works when he doesn´t have to use too much dialogue. But when he have his dialogue scenes he feels kind of boring. When you listen to his character talk you don´t really feel that interested. This is where Paul Bettany should have brought more life to his character, at least try to make his dialogue scenes more effective. On a positive note we have actor Karl Urban ( who is really good in the 2012 sci fi actin film Dredd, a must buy on physical media ) as the evil character Black Hat. He is one of the true highlights of the film Priest and seemed to enjoy making this character. There are a couple of other fun characters as well, but the strength of this film is actually the apocalyptic approach combined with vampires and the futuristic design. Priest may have some smaller flaws that could have been fixed, but i still enjoy this film for trying to bring a religious inspired story with a futuristic world. Director Scott Stewart proves with Priest you can make a different kind of vampire film and still keep some traditional ingredients. I would recommend this film on physical media, especially if you are a Mad Max fan. Priest deliever enough entertainment for the audience it was made for.

Rating: DDD