Mel Gibson directs this highly controversial and brutally visceral film about the suffering of Jesus Christ in the twelve hours leading up to his crucifixion. Betrayed by Judas Iscariot, Jesus is arrested and accused by the Pharisees of blasphemy, punishable by death. He is handed over to Roman soldiers who flagellate him until he is unrecognisable, then ordered to carry the heavy wooden cross through the streets of Jerusalem to Golgotha, where he is nailed to the cross. As he dies he experiences his last temptation: to momentarily doubt the presence of God, his Father, and to ask if he has been forsaken.