In an alternate world, humanity and vampires have warred for centuries. After the last Vampire War, the veteran Warrior Priest lives in obscurity with other humans inside one of the Church's walled cities. When the Priest's niece is kidnapped by vampires, the Priest breaks his vows to hunt them down. He is accompanied by the niece's boyfriend, who is a wasteland sheriff, and a former Warrior Priestess.
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I think Paul Bettany does well in solo hero movies but this time around, I felt they could have made him the vampire here and it probably would have clicked better than it actually did. The "soldier vampires" here look very evil and also there's a particular scene where they attack a family that live in isolation at an outpost - probably the scariest scene in the movie. Everything else about the movie didn't really hold my attention as most of the battles between the priests and the vampires seemed too rely too much on effects or were too illogical. Paul Bettany and Karl Urban do well but one wishes their action sequences had more punch - their final confrontation scenes were average. Cam Gigandet is more or less wasted in his role as a sheriff and Maggie Q(who shined in Die Hard 4) also gets a forgettable character here. Brad Dourif as a untrustworthy salesman is the only performance worth any mention here, although his role is short. Verdict - an OK vampire movie with at least some jumpy moments but not enough to make it a good horror fest. I wonder now why all these popular stars signed up for this.
In a dystopian future devastated by the war between humans and vampires, people live in walled cities controlled by the Church. Warrior priests are no longer necessary because vampires no longer pose a serious threat to civilization, but when a priest's niece is abducted by a resistant group of vampires, he calls into question his vows and philosophy of life.This premise seems to establish a more psychological and philosophical dimension to the film, but it is just that, a premise, because from here the priest leaves in pursuit of his niece, joins with her boyfriend and some other warrior priestess and it is only action and fx thereafter. And vampires are gray monsters without eyes and those who look like human vampires are just the servants. The film lasts an hour and a half, but it would benefit from another half hour to better establish the universe and the characters. Well, it served to entertain...
Sometimes you just want to watch swirly long coats and slow-mo martial arts set in post-apocalyptic landscapes of searing desert sands and the ghosts of our destroyed civilisation, don't you? This film is gorgeous to look at; from the cross tattoos on the priests' faces, to the retro wild west costumes, it's a highly stylised visual treat. The vampires were malignant, vicious amalgams: Aliens meets The Descent. Paul Bettany makes a convincing lead: the near-silent loaner on a mission. You basically have to put all logic to one side and not think too deeply about the plot of this film. Just go with it for the visuals, the action, the pace and some impressive special effects.
My quick rating - 5,9/10. Now that is a fun movie. A "Priest" is basically the badasses who protect the city in a post-apocalyptic city that is run by religious radicals. They are walled into the city to keep away from the vampires that live outside the walls that supposedly had all been terminated. But these aren't your every day vampires, they are mutated and don't have interest in romantic bites to turn you into one of them. basically they want you dead. After a "priest" (Paul Bettany" has his niece kidnapped, he goes looking for her and confronts the whole band of vampires. A fun action/scifi ish movie that just goes all over the board in the action department. Definitely worth watching and strangely flew under my radar until now. If the story itself wasn't so convoluted it would score higher so check reality at the door and grab your ninja crucifix throwing stars and you will enjoy the bloody romp through this interesting world.