The Priest (2021 film)

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The Priest
File:ThePriestPoster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJofin T. Chacko
Produced byAnto Joseph
B. Unnikrishnan
V. N. Babu
Screenplay byShyam Menon
Deepu Pradeep
Story byJofin T. Chacko
Starring
Music byRahul Raj
CinematographyAkhil George
Edited byShameer Muhammed
Production
company
  • Anto Joseph Film Company
  • RD Illuminations
Release date
  • 11 March 2021 (2021-03-11) (India)
Running time
147 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageMalayalam
Budget₹ 9 - 11 crore
Box office₹32 crore[1]

The Priest is a 2021 Indian Malayalam-language supernatural horror mystery film directed by debutant Jofin T. Chacko,[2]which marks the first collaboration of Mammootty and Manju Warrier in their career.[3] Produced jointly by B. Unnikrishnan and Anto Joseph,[4] the film features original score and soundtrack composed and produced by Rahul Raj. The film was scheduled to release on 31 July 2020 on the occasion of Eid Al Adha,[5][6] but production was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in India.[7] The film released on 11 March 2021[8] to mostly mixed reviews with the performances and background score garnering unanimous praise.[9][10][11][12][13] The film streams on Amazon Prime.

Plot[edit]

The Priest follows the adventures of Father Carmen Benedict. He is pleaded by a girl, Diya, to investigate a string of suicides in the rich Alatt family. Elizabeth Alatt is the only surviving member; Father Benedict and a police officer fixes an appointment to meet her the next day and inquire about the mysterious suicides. However, she commits suicide at night. The only person present with Elizabeth was Ameya Gabriel, a 11-year old orphan girl whom she picked up in Chennai. Ameya, a quiet and morose girl, was running away from the orphanage. Ameya is rescued and sent back to the orphanage where an attempt on her life the same night warns Father Benedict and the police of a grave conspiracy, implying that she had seen Elizabeth's killer.

Father Benedict hires few local workers to search the premises of the Alatt house. A strip of strong psychiatric pills are found on the ground; the pills could be prescribed only by a registered medical practitioner. Further investigation reveals that Elizabeth was under the treatment of Dr. Sanjay as well as all the other Alatt family members who committed suicide. Upon questioning, Dr. Sanjay admits to brainwashing Elizabeth to commit suicide and names two other accomplices. The case so unfolds that all three of them were members of the Alatt Trust and conspired to kill the family to gain control of the Alatt family business, money, and power. They confess and are sentenced to jail.

Though the Alatt family murders are solved, Father Benedict finds a mysterious and strange aura around Ameya, who remained tight-lipped about Elizabeth's murder and never cooperated with the police. Ameya always remained gloomy, sad, unhappy, and foul-tempered until a new teacher, Jessie Cherian, joined the school. Jessie takes Ameya under her wing, and steadily her grades and behaviour improved. It is revealed that Father Benedict had been tracking Ameya's conduct constantly and warns Jessie that one day she would need his help in dealing with Ameya.

Summer vacations arrived, and Ameya coaxes Jessie to get permission from the orphanage in-charge to allow her to spend 2-months of vacation with Jessie. Time passes in bliss for few weeks until Siddharth, Jessie's fiancé, enters the story. Ameya's complete demeanour changes on seeing Siddharth; she storms away, breaks glass with her hand, and eerily hounds Jessie while stating they both of them do not need anyone else in their lives. Scared, Jessie contacts Father Benedict who states that Ameya is possessed by the soul of Elizabeth, and she could be saved only by exorcism.

However, during exorcism, Father Benedict realises that the soul is not of Elizabeth but of Susan, who was the elder sister of Jessie and died during an accident around 11 years back. Through flashback scenes, it is revealed that Susan and Jessie lost their parents when Jessie was a toddler. Susan raises Jessie, and becomes a sports teacher in the school where Jessie and Siddharth studied.

One day, Jessie sneaks out of home to attend a party with Siddharth and their common friends. Both get drunk, and while driving back, they hit a scooter being driven by Susan, who was searching for Jessie. It is revealed that Susan's soul possessed Ameya at birth to seek revenge from Siddharth for causing her death and separating her from Jessie. However, Father Benedict revealed that it was Jessie who was driving that fateful night and she had unknowingly caused the accident in a drunken state. Siddharth was simply trying to protect Jessie, who was still unaware of the reality, from the consequences. Susan's soul leaves Ameya's body after knowing the reality.

The story ends with a twist though. Flashback scenes revealed that when Susan was taken to the hospital after the accident, she could have been saved. But, the doctor, Dr. Muraleedharan chose to end her life to protect his friend, a sports teacher who was caught by Susan for administrating steroids to students. Father Benedict helped Susan's soul to exact revenge from the duo - seeing her ghost, their car swerved and had an accident, and both of them died. The movie ends with Father Benedict saying, "now Susan, you can rest in peace".

Cast[edit]

Production[edit]

The principal photography commenced in January 2020[14] and had to put the filming into a temporary halt due to the pandemic. The last schedule was resumed in the first week of October and the team has completed filming the entire movie in the first week of November.[15]

On 12 January 2020, the first look poster shared on social media revealed that Mammootty plays a priest in the film and showed his character in a habit with his hood on and perusing what seems to be the Bible against the backdrop of a church.[16]

Box office[edit]

The Priest grossed around ₹8 crore from Kerala in its four-day opening weekend.[17]

Music[edit]

The songs and the film score were composed by Rahul Raj with lyrics penned by BK Harinarayanan. Nazarethin, the first single of the film was released on 24 January 2021.[18]

Track list
No. TitleSinger(s) Length
1. "Nazarethin"  Baby Niya Charly, Merin Gregory 03:59
2. "Neelambale"  Sujatha Mohan 03:55
3. "Kanne Uyirin"  Narayani Gopan 04:33

Release[edit]

The film was originally scheduled to release on August 2020, but the premiere was postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic. The release date was then projected to be on 4 February 2021,[19] and was delayed again.[20] The film was set to release on 4 March 2021.[21] And on 2 March 2021, film was again postponed indefinitely as the team couldn't get approval from the Kerala government for night shows.[22] The film was theatrically released on 11 March 2021 after Kerala govt gave permission for second shows in theatres.[23][8][24]

Critical response[edit]

The film had mixed responses from audience and critics alike. lThe Update rated the film 3.5/5 and stated that "As a debutant Director, Jofin T Chacko Proved himself as a brilliant director".[25]

References[edit]

  1. ↑ "Master, Vakeel Saab, and Krack: Tollywood films that revived box office business". The Indian Express. 22 April 2021.
  2. ↑ "Mammootty's next thriller titled 'The Priest'". The New Indian Express. 14 January 2020. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  3. ↑ Features, CE (13 January 2020). "Mammootty-Manju Warrier film titled The Priest". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  4. ↑ "Mammootty's First Project with Manju Warrier is Titled The Priest, First Look Out". News18.com. n.d. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  5. ↑ IndiaGlitz (13 January 2020). "Meet Mammootty – 'The Priest' – Malayalam News". IndiaGlitz.com. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  6. ↑ MOVIEBUZZ (12 January 2020). "Mammootty's 'The Priest'- First Look out!". Sify. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  7. ↑ Sidhardhan, Sanjith (6 May 2020). "The Priest team to begin editing and sound mixing". Times of India. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Mammootty's The Priest release confirmed for March 11". The Indian Express. 8 March 2021. Retrieved 10 March 2021.
  9. ↑ Narayanan, Nirmal (11 March 2021). "The Priest movie review: Mammootty's film is a classic horror crime thriller". www.ibtimes.co.in. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  10. ↑ "The Priest Movie Review: This Mammootty Starrer Is A Riveting Thriller That Stays True To Its Genre!". filmibeat.com. 11 March 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. ↑ Madhu, Vignesh (11 March 2021). "The Priest Review: A gripping mystery thriller!". onlookersmedia. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  12. ↑ https://in.style.yahoo.com/priest-review-mammoottys-horror-thriller-101952673.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAKy6VBpVKIvAUaqACGIBThIuOg6MjXKcKEzSU43J3_Ot8ETEFMcJ--sBriHtZhdagWrYiFPcD99rizsFwfX6gpExgHGi3CJUanB8KtO81aQc_rNTiM5-HrVhLapVEaKOyyNzumaHaaVBeDlbPQ5BzJN0GOWpeAohVJvhmaLnfkmr
  13. ↑ "The Priest Box Office Collection | Day Wise | Worldwide - Sacnilk". www.sacnilk.com. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  14. ↑ "The Priest first look: Mammootty gives off an ominous vibe | Entertainment News,The Indian Express". The Indian Express. 13 January 2020. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  15. ↑ "It's a wrap for Mammootty's 'The Priest'". Times Of India. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  16. ↑ "Mammootty-Jofin T Chacko movie titled Priest". Times Of India. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  17. ↑ "'The Priest' first weekend box office collection report: Mammootty-starrer hits the right notes". Deccan Herald. 15 March 2021.
  18. ↑ "The Priest Song - Nazarethin (Lyrical)". Times of India. Retrieved 24 January 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  19. ↑ "Mammootty-Manju Warrier film 'The Priest' to release in February first week". The New Indian Express. 22 January 2021. Retrieved 22 February 2021.
  20. ↑ N, Srinath (30 January 2021). "The Priest release postponed | Another Mammootty movie to be delayed; The release of 'The Priest' has been postponed" The Priest release postponed | വീണ്ടുമൊരു മമ്മൂട്ടി ചിത്രം തിയേറ്ററിലെത്താൻ വൈകും; 'ദി പ്രീസ്റ്റ്' റിലീസ് മാറ്റിവച്ചു. News18 മലയാളം (in മലയാളം). Retrieved 22 February 2021.
  21. ↑ {arashar, Shivam (2 February 2021). "Mammootty starrer The Priest to release on March 4". India Today. Retrieved 22 February 2021.
  22. ↑ "Mammootty's The Priest is ready, but won't release this week". The new Indian express. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
  23. ↑ "Mammootty's The Priest will Release on 11 March 2021". The Update. Retrieved 8 March 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  24. ↑ "'The Priest' first weekend box office collection report: Mammootty-starrer hits the right notes". Deccan Herald. 15 March 2021. The Priest is the first malayalam film to gross 1 crore from Saudi Arabia
  25. ↑ "ദി പ്രീസ്റ്റ് റിവ്യൂ; കൈയ്യടി നേടി ഫാദർ ബെനഡിക്ട്". The Update. Retrieved 11 March 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

External links[edit]


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