After premiering at FrightFest several years ago, this wild, profane, gory, animated action-comedy is finally getting a general release and the wait has been more than worth it.

Chuck Steel (Mike Mort) is a no-nonsense, square-jawed cop who doesn’t have much luck with his partners. That doesn’t stop his boss Captain Jack Schitt (voiced again by Mort) insisting he has one. That’s the least of his problems, however, as he’s also mentally occupied by his ex-wife – who died and absolutely, definitely didn’t leave him! – and an innate fear of clowns. Plus, the homeless winos have become vampires (trampire… geddit?) and are sucking the blood of the inebriated. Can Professor Van Rental (errr… Mort) help to save the day?

Gloriously un-PC, Chuck Steel takes no prisoners. It looks like the love child of Team America and forgotten Gerry Anderson-produced series Dick Spanner, but is certainly not a lazy copy. Writer/director/star Mort has crafted his own world, playing up the clichés of both the cop action movie and zombie subgenre. Building on his short, Raging Balls of Steel Justice, Mort uses the extending running time to load up even more bombastic Claymation set pieces and plenty of bad-taste gags.

The intervening years that the film has sat on the shelf haven’t done many favours for some of the gags, but generally, everything hits the points where it should. Despite it looking on paper as though Mort has done everything himself vocally, there are appearances from the likes of Jennifer Saunders and Paul Whitehouse. The ‘80s action cop movie has been parodied to death, even at the time the likes of Lethal Weapon were giving a knowing wink to audiences, and Chuck Steel doesn’t really bring much new to the proceedings. It doesn’t diminish how much fun it is, though.

Chuck Steel: Night of the Trampires is in cinemas from October 29th.