Linkshoch Wonderful Movie

Lovesusti The Worst Film Ever

Portia Hilton Blistering performances.

Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Suradit I didn't find the portrayal of the main character to be especially realistic. If someone has grown up Catholic and gay, and particularly if he chooses to enter the priesthood, he's going to have to have developed a sense of self-preservation along the way. Father Greg's irrational behavior belies that.Of course, everyone can be driven to do idiotic things because of suppressed sexual urges, but in this case Father Greg seems to be more a victim of stupidity than anything else. He arrives in a new parish located in a lower socio-economic area, supposedly in response to his own request, lectures another priest because of his inappropriate behavior and then bicycles off to a gay club.The club couldn't have been very far from his new posting. Hard to believe he would assume that by removing his dog collar he'd be cloaked in anonymity or that he would never again encounter the man with whom he has sex, possibly in the streets or in his church. While this might be explained as impulsive behavior in one instance, making out with the same man in a car in a wide-open public setting seems to beggar belief. And his love interest, Graham, seems remarkably unaware of the potential for problems that a priest might face if discovered to be having a gay affair.Given the church's history of burying such problems rather than dealing with them, the reactions of the bishop may or may not have been realistic, although an amazing number of people seem to be borderline drama queens in this film, not least Father Greg who turns the focus of everyone's problems onto himself even before he manages to hit the headlines.Probably the most convincing acting came from the angry parishioners and other priests whose cranky approach to Christianity was underscored by their behavior.I would say that the screenplay didn't play favorites. The lower economic classes came off as self-indulgent bigots. The church and its hierarchy were, deservedly, shown as self-serving hypocrites. And the gays in the movie seemed to exist in a state of mentally challenged numbness to the world around them. The author apparently had numerous axes to grind.The ending, in addition to portraying Father Greg as emotionally feeble-minded, was simply embarrassing.It may have been controversial when it was first released, but probably for the wrong reasons.

Jackson Booth-Millard I remember watching this film in Secondary School for R.E. (Religious Education), because it portrayed some important issues, so when I had the opportunity to see it again I had to, from director Antonia Bird (Ravenous). Basically in Liverpool, Father Greg Pilkington (Linus Roache, son of William aka Ken Barlow from Coronation Street) has recently come to St. Mary's parish, and he is shocked to see Father Matthew Thomas (Tom Wilkinson) having a sexual relationship with housekeeper Maria Kerrigan (Cathy Tyson). Despite knowing this disregard for the rule of celibacy, he continues working at the church like a professional priest, despite hiding a secret himself, that he is homosexual, which in these days can get you arrested. Greg has allowed people to open up in the confessional, and he is shocked to hear young student Lisa Unsworth (Christine Tremarco) confess that her father (Robert Pugh) is abusing her, and sticking to the rules of sanctity he knows it would be a sin to tell anyone. While at the same time having a nice relationship with Graham (Robert Carlyle), Greg tries to warn Lisa's mother (Lesley Sharp) to keep an eye on her daughter, but she foolishly believes the husband protects them, and he confronts the priest to mind his own business. A big blow comes when he both faces Mrs. Unsworth confronting him about the fact he knew about the incestuous molestation and she caught her husband, and the priest is arrested for engaging in sexual activity with another man in a parked car, to which he pleads guilty and is let go. The next day everyone knows about his homosexuality, most feel disgusted that he is what he is, and more so that he is committing sin and going against his beliefs. Father Matthew demands he leave the chapel, but he sees his side of the story and forgives him and says he should go back to work, for a while he resists, and in the end, after returning Greg gets a final hug from Lisa, and they sob together in front the communion queue. Also starring James Ellis as Father Ellerton. Roache gives a marvellous performance as the religious man struggling with the pressures of his beliefs, Wilkinson gets his moments as his fellow priest friend, and Carlyle is also effective as the gay lover, this is a thought provoking story filled with compassion, harrowing material and a real sense of how beliefs overpower people, a great British drama. It was nominated the BAFTA for the Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film. Very good!

James Hitchcock Father Greg Pilkington is a young Roman Catholic priest who is assigned to a tough working-class parish in inner-city Liverpool, where he acts as assistant to the existing parish priest Father Matthew Thomas. The two men are very different. Father Pilkington is a theological and political conservative; his first sermon is effectively a paraphrase of Margaret Thatcher's famous "no such thing as society" speech. The considerably older Father Thomas is politically a left-wing radical and a theological liberal; Father Pilkington is shocked to discover that he is engaged in a long-standing sexual relationship with his housekeeper Maria.The younger man, however, also has his own struggles with his sexuality, as he is secretly a homosexual. He meets another man, Graham, at a local gay nightclub and the two begin a physical relationship. Father Pilkington's faith is further tested when a teenage schoolgirl confides to him in the confessional that she is being sexually abused by her father. Because of the traditional Catholic doctrine of the "seal of the confessional", he is unable to notify the authorities, even though he is sorely tempted to do so."Priest" was one of the most controversial British films of the 1990s because of the way in which it dealt with the issues of homosexuality, incest, child abuse and religious celibacy. As might be expected, it was particularly controversial in Catholic circles, and there have been numerous allegations, both on this board and elsewhere, that it is "anti-Catholic". Critic Roger Ebert, although he is no longer a practising Catholic, was particularly scathing, saying that "For this movie to be described as a moral statement about anything other than the filmmaker's prejudices is beyond belief." This is not a view with which I would agree. "Priest" is a dramatic exploration of various moral issues raised by Catholic theology, not an anti-Catholic diatribe. It is clearly not anti-Catholic in the sense of "Protestantism good, Catholicism bad". Nor in the sense of "Atheism good, Religion bad, Catholicism particularly so". Both the protagonists Father Pilkington and Father Thomas are men who, despite their disagreements with the Church authorities, find (in different ways) that Christian teachings give meaning to their lives as a source of values. Both (although they are tempted to leave the priesthood) remain loyal to the Church as an institution, believing that it is through the Church that they can best serve God. That doesn't seem to me to be either anti-Christian or anti-Catholic.At times it appears as though the scriptwriter Jimmy McGovern is arguing against traditionalist religion and in favour of a more inclusive Catholicism which accepts married priests, takes a more liberal line on homosexuality and focuses more on social issues than questions of sexual morality. Yet even this would be an oversimplification of the film's position. When Father Pilkington is finally exposed as gay, he is the target of severe criticism from his bishop, from several members of his congregation and from an elderly priest who tells him in Latin that he is a pustule on the body of Christ. (Greg's response is to tell him, also in Latin, "Go **** yourself, you dirty old man"). Yet his severest critic is himself. He sees his homosexual nature as something sinful, as a temptation that his is too weak to resist.Both Father Pilkington and Father Thomas can, in different ways, be seen as hypocritical. Yet Greg at least sees his hypocrisy for what it is. He realises that his priesthood gives him a position of spiritual authority within the Catholic Church and widespread respect outside it. He is therefore bound in all honesty to try to fulfil the responsibilities which go with that position, including the responsibility to abide by his vow of celibacy. Father Thomas, by contrast, is not self-critical enough to realise how hypocritical he is being. One of his favourite quotes from the Bible is "Judge not, lest ye be judged". He interprets this, however, as a sort of bargain with God, hoping that if he takes a laissez-faire attitude to other people's sex-lives then God will turn a blind eye to his own blatant violation of his vow of celibacy. Father Thomas's principle of non-judgementalism does not, it should be noted, extend beyond the field of sexual ethics. In political matters he can be very judgemental indeed; in one sermon he accuses those who do not share his socialist world-view of "spitting in the face of God".This was Antonia Bird's first feature film, and I was very impressed by it. She manages the difficult task of making complex religious issues seem both interesting and relevant in the cinema, but "Priest" is much more than a filmed theological debate. It is also a powerful psychological drama, with excellent performances from the two leading actors, Linus Roache and Tom Wilkinson, and an important contribution to the distinguished British tradition of social-realist film-making. Unlike some, I did not see it as a prejudiced attack on the Church. Rather, it is an exploration of a number of important issues which the Church needs to confront. That need is perhaps even more urgent in 2010 than it was in 1994. 8/10

gifford86 Gay priest, Practicing his sexuality, Torn between desire and duty to God. Hetero priest, Assuaging his loneliness With lovely, dark woman, Giving no thought to "duty". Greg and Matthew, Matthew and Greg. Slowly coming to know each other, Slowly coming to respect each other. Matthew, hiding his own dark secret, Reaches out in compassion To Greg, whose "sin" Is thrust into the public's eye. Greg, consumed by his fall from grace, Still feels compassion for Lisa. Together they comfort each other. Where is God in all this? S/he is there, all right. In Greg's knowing God wants him to be a priest, In Greg's agonizing prayer for help for Lisa, Who is being molested by her father, In Greg's longing for sexual love, In Greg's turning from that longing, In Matthew's raw, burning compassion -- For the poor, the downtrodden, the different, Greg. In Jesus' forgiveness manifested in Lisa. Oh, yes, God is there, all right.