1December 2022 –Fire Breathing Films, a leading production company, has announced that PRIOR, the movie, will be officially released on December 25, 2022.Just in time for the holiday season, the highly anticipated announcement will bringPRIOR, a world-class comedian, to movie and television screens around the world.

Directed by critically-acclaimed director Mark Allen Michaels, who is known for his recent work onVampyrZ on a Boat, PRIOR, the movie,willstarDallas Valdez and Curt Lambert in what is expected to be one of the most funny, edgy, intelligent, scathing, and unique movies of the year. Created to salutecomedians and stand-up acts, PRIOR is a no holds barred tribute to the human spirit, and the full-length movie features themixed-race comic as he performs his deeply personal comedy show with the help of his stage manager, Sy.

“It was a brutal rehearsal period and even more intense during the actual filming, but the end result was worth it all,” remarkedDallas Valdez.“We are excited to share the movie with everyone worldwide on December 25,” he added.

PRIOR, the movie,was filmed earlier this year before a packed house at the prestigious Covina Center for the Performing Arts, a state-of-the-art historic theater located in downtown Covina, California.

“We filmed PRIOR shortly after I had been down for the count with a three-week bout of COVID,” remarked Curt Lambert. “Being able to play with Dallas Valdez in front of Mark’s camera brought me out of a dark place and made me feel alive again. The fun of filming PRIOR and playing Sy, was, you could say, a sigh of relief,” he added.

Prior The Movie review
By B. Mazumder ‘Miss it at your own risk…’ When it comes to character analysis in cinema, stand-up comics have long enjoyed a special focus. On a surface level, comics represent the inherent urge for people to laugh, smile, and feel joy—which should ideally make for boring, one-dimensional portrayals. Contrary to that, we've seen some truly breathtaking, and often tortured portrayals of people who try to make others happy. Right from the days of The King of Comedy to the Watchmen’s comedian—the tragicomic existence of the people who personify happiness has been riveting but that doesn't mean we've finished exploring the comic's inner demons. There are more layers to peel yet. This is a task that has been undertaken by and given a new meaning in “Prior the Movie”.
Prior the Movie is the chronicle of a mixed-race comic who crashes, burns, laughs, and staggers his way to punchlines with the help of his trusted stage manager, Sy. Much of Prior’s onstage performances are delivered by a comic in severe pain—both physically and psychologically. Physically, he's burnt all over, mentally he's scarred. Despite meeting severe burns all over his body and face on multiple occasions, Prior gathers the courage to perform and owns his time on stage. The self-deprecating jokes about his appearance and the constant pain remind us and the audience of the reality tethered to the jokes. Prior seems to have lived a difficult childhood which triggered him to use humor as a shield while laughing at life. When we start seeing comedy as a coping mechanism, Prior's jokes start hitting harder. Anyone in Prior's condition would lose their will to go on with life but Prior, a seasoned struggler, resorts to comedy to save himself.
A few of his jokes can be construed as cries for help which dissociate the audience from comedic trance and turns the performance into a theater of the absurd where exaggerated and fantastical elements work in tandem. If it were not for Sy’s constant feedback, we'd have been sucked into the dark abyss of a powerful and painful performance. Despite all the irony, Prior the Movie does make you laugh with some bold jokes and the physical performances of the actor duo must be appreciated.
Prior the Movie sets up an interesting premise of physical pain translating into personal trauma, finally culminating as a boisterous comedy. It makes you think, it makes you empathetic, and it definitely makes you laugh at the absurdity of all. It's slated to release this Christmas which should make it available to folks looking to enjoy deft filmmaking. Miss it at your own risk.

The movie will be available on major streaming platforms, including Amazon, iTunes, and Google Play. Watch a free trailer for PRIOR https://vimeo.com/767859463/5c143fd8b0.

Media Contact
Company: Fire Breathing Films
Name:Mark Allen Michaels
Title:Producer/Director
Email:[email protected]