I'm a fan of author Robert Aickman, who created some very unsettling ghost stories during the middle of the 20th century. This ten-minute short sees Mark Gatiss in an adaptation of one of those, about a man visiting an ancient cathedral and meeting some decidedly odd characters.I'm familiar with Gatiss for his work in other old-fashioned genre fare (THE CROOKED HOUSE and FIRST MEN IN THE MOON), but this is very much a pointless exercise. The story feels too constrained by the running time, and the events are played for laughs rather than sinister effect. The result is a story that's quirky and odd, but never frightening or in the least bit disturbing.There's no faulting Gatiss or the enthusiasm for bringing a nowadays obscure writer to life, but that's no guarantee of success - and THE CICERONES can in no way be described as a successful short film.

This is a great example of what film making should be about – directors should watch and learn from this terrific short. The suspense and gradual build up of horror is achieved without any gore or slasher element and the subtle symbolism is brilliantly understated. (Has anybody noticed the clock set in stone at five to twelve whilst Trant's own watch stopped when he entered the building.) Did Trant ever have the chance to leave before it was too late or did he ignore the warnings and use up his last minutes unwisely? At the end the viewer is left with a question - is this a gateway to Hell?If you have quarter of an hour to spare – here is wonderful way to spend it. I have never watched LEAGUE OF GENTLEMEN and don't need to - this film stands up on its own perfectly.

I didn't have any idea what THE CICERONES was going to be about before watching it but after seeing it I can only describe this short film as " LEAGUE OF GENTLEMEN Go To A Slavonic Country " An English art lover travels abroad during the inter-war years and visits a cathedral that is inhabited by an assortment of weird characters . Can you see the parallels ? When I say the art critic is played by Mark Gatiss you can't help but be reminded of the cult BBC comedy and the only thing missing is the guy done up like a black minstrel wondering where Dave is I wouldn't go as far as saying THE CICERONES will only appeal to LEAGUE OF GENTLEMAN fans but Bob misses the point . If he was a regular viewer of the cult BBC comedy he would have noticed the structure and atmosphere is identical to LEAGUE . Thankfully Gatiss and co aren't a one trick pony but this is fairly disappointing short film

This is a pretty interesting short film which is sure to be relegated to late night obscurity due to its length and nature. it is the story of a man (mark gatiss, of "the league of gentlemen"/ "dr who" books fame) who is on a journey to examine a rare painting, but when he arrives at the church where the painting is supposedly held, he is set upon by some pretty bizarre characters.Directed by jeremy dyson (the only member of the league of gentlemen writing team never to appear on screen in the tv show) it manages to create a nice sense of tension in a genuinely eerie setting. however, it is pretty bewildering, and at the end of the day, will not attract much attention apart from curious "league of gentlemen" fans, which is a shame, as it's nicely directed and there are great performances given by all.