Bunuel ran out of money and as a result this film remained only half-feature length.
However this didn't prevent it winning the Special Jury Prize at Venice in 1965.
Simon is a man who spends six years, six weeks and six days standing on a pillar in the desert as an inspiration to the peasants and to communicate with God better.
He resists temptation to come down until the end when he swept from the desert into the middle of New York.Simon of the Desert is a typically outrageous and provocative commentary on organised religion from Luis Buuel, presenting the parable of Simon, a would-be saint who leads an ascetic life at the top of a succession of pillars of varying height, while being continually tested with visits from a seductive incarnation of the Devil, memorably played by Silvia Pinal. A short film with a significant punch, Simon of the Desert is one of Buuel's Mexican masterpieces, with stunning desert cinematography from Gabriel Figueroa and an unforgettably bizarre ending.