Synopsis:
The world has been ravaged by a centuries long war between humans and vampires. The Priests turned the war in the favour of the humans, most of who now live in walled-in cities where the Priests live in obscurity along with the rest of the subjugated humans, reigned by the Church. But it now seems the vampire threat is re-emerging after an unprovoked attack on a family in the wastelands and the Priests are needed once again.
The beginning of Priest is consistent with the comic book origins of the story. In a not dissimilar way to the animations in 300, the back-story is explained by voice-over and a graphic novel style presentation. It’s an effective way to cover a lot of ground in a short space of time and plunge the viewer into the storyline at a chosen point. That chosen point is where we find a Bill Compton (not literally, but actor Stephen Moyer) cameo! I like the nod to True Blood that this implies, why else would you cast Moyer in a film about vampires? Priest is not just about vampires though, there is also a not so subtle social commentary about the authority of the church. There is predictably a lot of religious symbolism in Priest. There is also a poignant moment that has resonance in today’s society. The Priests have to re-integrate back into a society that sent them off to war, but they find that on returning home there is nothing there for them and no support to help them deal with the horrors they faced. This clearly has parallels with how modern soldiers returning from tours have to re-adjust to civilian life and deal with the effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Whether this is a political comment though is unclear.
Predictably enough, the 3D is surplus to requirements and serves no purpose other than to remove additional money from the cinema goer, in fact wearing the 3D glasses throughout Priest is akin to wearing sunglasses while watching a 2D film.
Although Priest is a reasonably entertaining and enjoyable apocalyptic sci-fi fantasy, with a bit of a Mad Max vibe from the wide shots of wastelands, the ending feels rushed and anti-climatic. It does seem that the door has been left open for a sequel that will never materialise and an extra 10 minutes to tie up the loose ends and deal with the remaining issue would have been time well spent.
