Clearskin
Directed by Hadi Hajaig. Starring Sean Bean, Abhin Galeya, Charlotte Rampling, James Fox, Peter Polycarpou 16 cert, general release, 108 min
Hajaig wants to make the British Parallax View and he’s halfway there.
By the third act we’re aware that no one in the world of black ops and terrorism cells can be trusted. (Who new?) In common with TV’s Spooks and current critical wow Homeland , Hajaig’s script incorporates sneaky nods to recent political scandals and conspiracies.
This is a big movie trapped inside a tiny one. Tussles over British- Islamic identity are seamlessly incorporated. A boorish Middle Eastern assassin with a fondness for diabolical jumpers and Mr Bean marks an audacious and deftly handled shift between dark Borat comedy and unvarnished horror.
There’s a lovely frisson between Bean and Rampling that makes you think what James Bond and M could be.
Unhappily, budgetary constraints do tell on the finished product. Cleanskin works hard with make-do joins, library music and tiny interiors but can’t quite rise above them. As for that fake headline about Spurs winning the Champions League . . .
Still, we can name 10 Hollywood attempts to grapple with the war on terror that don’t work nearly as well.
Read further:
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/theticket/2012/0309/1224313046424.html
