Fist of Jesus

Sometimes it helps if you go in to a film generally and a short film in particular knowing absolutely about it . I noticed Bob's one line summary and decided to stop reading there and then and catch the film in its entirety on the shortoftheweek website . Like nearly every other film I've seen on that website I decided to forgo reading the written comments that always goes along with the film and just watch it ignorant as to what I'd be getting

This was a very good idea because all I knew was it was " gory " and had" a good sense of humour " . As it started I realised something else - it was in Spanish and Spanish cinema has a long and noble history of horror and twisted morbid cinema which is both enjoyable and thought provoking . If you're expecting something biblical with this story then think again because this is Monty Python meets the early splatter punk horror of Peter Jackson . Early in to the running time Jesus feels the need to perform yet another miracle but when you're interfering with the very laws of nature itself something might just go wrong and I had to stifle a laugh while thinking I wasn't expecting that as the initial inciting incident took place

To be honest after this the short just becomes a long extended action sequence featuring gore , mutilation and death and the narrative doesn't extend in to going beyond any of this but that's not necessarily a criticism and story knows that it's appealing to an audience interested in gross out comedy horror . Special mention should go to the effects and make up team who obviously put a lot of hard work in to giving the audience a good time . If I was a Hollywood producer I'd track this crew down and sign them up for a studio but it's a sad fact of life that nowadays Hollywood studios think that special effects are exclusively CGI and pyrotechnics . As it stands this little known Spanish short quite rightly puts Hollywood to shame

The story of Jesus has never before been captured more accurately or watchably than this. Sorry Mormons, but this is the true continued testament of Christ.

Remember that vicar in Peter Jackson's splatter classic Brain Dead who used his martial arts skills to smite zombies in the name of God? Well, here we have another fellow kicking undead arse for the Lord… none other than the son of God himself, Jesus Christ (Marc Velasco), who takes extreme and very gory measures after accidentally starting a zombie outbreak while showing off his power to resurrect the dead. With a little help from pal Judas (Noé Blancafort), JC chops, saws, hacks, punches and kicks his way through an army of mouldy flesh-eaters (which includes Pharisian zombies, Roman zombies, and Cowboy zombies—yes, you read that right… Cowboy zombies!) with only an endless supply of fish for weapons (it's that kind of film).

Incredibly stupid but also incredibly entertaining, Fist of Jesus is fifteen minutes of pure, unadulterated gore-drenched fun, directed with plenty of flair and energy by Adrián Cardona and David Muñoz, whose irreverent splat-stick style has clearly been inspired by the early work of the aforementioned Mr. Jackson. Guts are ripped, bodies torn asunder, piranha fish thrown and heads crushed, with as much blood and body-parts chucked about in the process as the budget will allow. By the end of the film, Jesus's traditional white robes have turned bright red. Needless to say, devout Christians should probably give this a wide berth: a healthy sense of humour about all things Biblical is a must.

8.5 out of 10, rounded up to 9 for IMDb.

I have a feeling when I watch these short, low budget movies that the money doesn't buy you a good movie. Brilliant idea? Enthusiastic amateur actors? You have a good movie. From time to time you see great movies, they are hilarious. I really enjoy an amateur movie if I can forget about it's amateur characteristic. That means they really loved the idea around the movie and they tried their best to entertain

Watch it if:

• you like horrors. A must see!!!

• you like amateur movies with fresh ideas.

Don't watch if:

• you go to church every weekend. Seriously this is a movie what you will have to confess next time.