A cast iron alibi will normally be enough to mount a decent enough defence if the boys in blue come a knocking.

However, suspected mass murderer Sean Veil (Evans) goes one step further - he videos himself every second of the day and stores the tapes to prove his innocence.

His obsession with archiving his every move stems back to the time he was accused of murdering a young family...and only escaped conviction on a technicality.

He had been arrested on the dubious evidence of criminal profiler Saul Seger (McNeice), who still insists Veil is the guilty man.

Ten years down the line Veil is still waiting for that knock on the door...but when it comes he'll be ready. Maybe.

First time director John Simpson has fashioned a stylish thriller, shot in cold blue and evoking a claustrophobic atmosphere of chilled paranoia.

A shaven-headed Evans - not a pretty sight - is nicely cast as the innocent raging against his frame-up by an Orwellian system.

The tension is also nicely cranked up when Veil can't account for his movements when tapes mysteriously go missing just when a fresh murder has occurred.

Menace is provided by Sean McGinley and Colin Salmon as a consumptive cop and his slick sidekick while McNeice can always by relied upon to supply a dose of corpulent corruption.

The great shame is that all the effort expended in the suspenseful build-up is frittered away in a final reel which plays out like Cluedo on speed.

Simpson, who has achieved an admirable plate-spinning act by keeping all the conspiracy theories in the air, loses his nerve.

Overcooked confessional dialogue, ill-considered twists and plain barking plotlines are suddenly thrown into the mix, dragging it down to the level of a soap opera on fast-forward.

Rachael Stirling, of Tipping The Velvet, also delivers a performance of unintentional comic value not seen since the glory days of Crossroads.

It's a shame, because there are plenty of good ideas on offer. We'll watch further developments with interest.

Tim Evans