priest

SYNOPSIS - PRIEST

Not quite as incendiary as its theme
would suggest, nor as blasphemous as
religious conservative protestors called
it, Priest is the moving, provocative
and quite powerful story of one
clergyman's struggle for sexual identity
and religious idealism. Linus Roache
gives a stirring performance as Father
Greg, a newly transferred priest
assigned to a parish in a working-class
neighborhood of Liverpool. As he
comes in conflict with the liberal Father
Matthew (Tom Wilkinson in a terrific
portrayal), who is having an affair with
the housekeeper (Cathy Tyson),
Father Greg tries to come to terms with
his emerging gay sexuality. This was
the crux of the film's controversy, and
though writer Jimmy McGovern and
director Bird present a realistic and
no-holds-barred examination of his
coming out, the heart of the film is the
touching story of a sexually abused
teen who confides in Father Greg, thus
engaging him in a crisis of conscience
of whether to break his vow. In her
debut, Bird has fashioned a
remarkably compelling debate on
religious dogma, one intended to
provoke thought as it stirs one's
emotions.