This is your average film, a little short I would say. It got pushed back almost a year for release date reasons and to convert it to 3D. I really don’t know why they ended up putting it smack dab in with all the summer movies, I think it would’ve benefited more from an October 2010 release. I did enjoy this film for what it was, it did a fantastic job of creating a setting and locale. Landscapes were great and for once the 3D actually added to the depth of field in respect to the scenery. Smoke ash falling from the sky, embers of flames drifting into the air, the 3D added a very nice particle effect. It really depends on the movie and I’m a big naysayer of checking out post-converted movies, but Priest wasn’t too bad. I guess you could say the 3D wasn’t terrible. Nothing can truly be as bad as The Last Airbender’s 3D.
Anyway, this movie is based off a Korean manwha (manga/graphic novel) of the same name. The movie itself deviates off the manga in story and takes it’s own to create. The creator of the manwha was on set to give the ok. The visuals really are nice in this film and coming off Thor, I wish Thor had done a good of job creating a setting in Asgard. The story itself is relatively weak mainly because by the end of the movie you feel as though things are just starting. I don’t know if I could smell Trilogy or what or the fact the movie could’ve benefited from another 30-40 min of exposition. The director Scott Stewart’s last film was Legion. He’s getting better at his craft of post-apocalyptic lore, it’s interesting how he approaches what he captures on camera. He’s also a visual effects developer, so you almost wonder if he sees things in his head as he directs. I think it works well. It reminds me the director of Tron Legacy and how he is an architecture major, you can tell where these directors put in their personal touches that just work really well. Call it a specialty or whatever, but I think it’s experiences like this, the little things I can take from a film that makes segments really enjoyable to see. Is Priest a good movie? I’d say it’s decent enough. I’d wait till the disc release if I had to recommend it. I’m a sucker for these types of films too, so my bias might be rooted in that. I’ll definitely pick it up to own down the road and put it next to my copy of Pandorum. Again I just like these types of films. I mean Priest’s genre is sci-fi/vampire/western/post-
apocalypse. That’s my idea of a geeky movie, you always just hope it translates well. At least this movie had a story though, unlike Sucker Punch. Anyway, the other thing I liked about this movie was the cast. It was another small thing that worked well I thought and just made the experience enjoyable. So that’s, that’s my impression of Priest. I’d actually recommend checking out the 3D if you can. The particle effects were really nice. Pirates is up next week!
