The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse (15)

As a huge fan of The League of Gentlemen's previous work (three TV series, a Christmas special, a couple of live DVDs, Radio Four output), my expectations were pretty huge for their first feature film, The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse. It's hard to work out whether it was a disappointment or not.

The story, as always, centres around the residents of fictional Northern hell-hole Royston Vasey, a place so odd that nosebleeds and wife-stealing are everyday occurrences. When they discover that the writing team (Steve Pemberton, Mark Gatiss, Reece Shearsmith and Jeremy Dyson) plan to kill them off to work on other projects, they decide to fight back. Hilary Briss (the psychotic butcher) and Herr Lipp (the, er, paedophilic German choir master) run amok in central London, while Geoff Tipps (demented businessman) enters a world of medieval conspiracies and winged beasts. All, obviously, stand out like rather bizarre sore thumbs.

As unique and forward-thinking as the TV show which spawned it, this movie aims to demonstrate just what would happen if Royston Vasey's locals were transported into our world, coming face-to-face with their creators. As with the TV series, this big postmodern joke isn't simply an excuse for a batch of one-liners (though there are some, and they're VERY funny), but is much more about the disturbing situations these folk get themselves into. The only danger is simply that the film may not be anything more than the embellishment of its one central gag.

The blatantly hefty production budget has resulted in a smooth, sharp and highly original piece, without compromising any of the charm built up by The League over the last ten years. It's full of nods to the team's Northern Gothic influences and features blink-and-you-miss-them cameos from the likes of Peter Kay, Simon Pegg and Victoria Wood, but at the end of the day it's definitely one for the hardcore fans. If you're a casual enthusiast, or you're looking for a nice first date movie, it's probably best not to bother. But if you love Tubbs & Edward, Dr Chinnery, Pauline's Pens and filthy jokes involving giraffes then it's worth the investment.

Rob Barker, 09.06.05