Sean Bean stars as Ewan, a government agent who specialises in breaking arms and murdering people at close quarters. The death of his wife during an unspecified terrorist attack has left him with an almighty chip on his shoulder, which is something high-ranking, chain-smoking official Charlotte (played by Charlotte Rampling) exploits perfectly when a suitcase full of Semtex is stolen by a group of British terrorists. Ewan is paired with young agent Mark (Tom Burke) and sent off on its trail – and with the substance already used to deadly effect in two bomb attacks in Britain’s capital, there’s little time for Ewan and Mark to track down the terrorists before they strike again. Once we’re introduced to Ewan, the narrative switches to Ash (Abhin Galeya) a young Muslim who’s seduced into violent extremism by a smooth-talking, The Unforgiven-quoting preacher, Nabil (Peter Colycarpou). In a series of overlong scenes, we see Ewan’s gradual shift from mildly politicised law student to full-blown terrorist; his doomed relationship with a classmate (Tuppence Middleton) only serving to further his alienation from the decadence of life in the UK. Written and directed by Hadi Hajaig, ClearSkin makes an attempt at providing a Heat-style look at two characters who are both extremists with divergent ideologies. There are some problems with this. First, neither character is particularly relatable (although overlong, Heat worked because it so successfully rounded out its protagonists). We know nothing about Bean’s character, other than that he once served overseas, and that he lost his wife in a terrorist attack. Admittedly, we do learn more about Ash, and Abhin Galeya is great in a role that is at least invested with more depth than Bean’s. On a happier note, Sean Bean adds a solidly embittered charisma as Ewan, Charlotte Rampling has a particularly lusty way of uttering the word ‘Semtex’ that sends a little frisson down my spine, and the script has its moments – one pre-bombing monologue even borders on the sublimely poetic. The film’s rather poverty-stricken budget means that, sadly, the direction is rather less poetic – the same aerial shot of central London’s used at least five times, and most of its events appear to take place in hotel rooms around the Tottenham Court Road area of the capital. Follow Den Of Geek on Twitter right here. And be our Facebook chum here.