Duplicity Reviews

When it comes to spy thrillers, there's a divide among moviegoers: some prefer the action-packed, guns-a-blazin', brainless movie (which we see a lot of, probably because this is the kind most people prefer, hence more box office money), and then you have the usually smarter, dialogue-based movie, in which the twists and turns come more as a result of characters bluffing and double-bluffing one another, and the weapons used are words rather than guns. I can easily deal with watching the former type of film as long as it doesn't insult my brain, but my preference decisively falls towards the latter choice, which is why I heartily welcome something as fun and complex as Duplicity.

That's not to say that there aren't any bad movies in the realm of the cerebral film. For instance, both Ocean's Twelve and Ocean's Thirteen were fairly mediocre; neither was saved by its great starpower, and neither could match the awesomely crisp sense of fun that we got from the first film in that franchise. The reason why they weren't good is because they were much more complicated than they needed to be and the way the scenes were edited was annoying as all heck. Duplicity is getting similar criticism, but I don't feel it's warranted. I didn't find it hard to follow at all; it's simply the type of movie that rewards people who pay attention (which, then again, anyone with a short attention span shouldn't be watching it in the first place). The flashback sequences don't really confound the plot or distract from the action; instead, they slowly reveal a good deal of background on our two main characters, and the editors have incorporated them well into the rest of the picture.

Duplicity is one of those rare experiences: a movie that is over 2 hours long that held my attention for its entire running time. The banter here is just too good. While one can complain that the movie does have plot holes, and that Tom Wilkinson isn't used nearly as well as he was in Tony Gilroy's last film (Michael Clayton), there's no denying that there's much entertainment to be found here for those who prefer this type of film. And if this isn't your cup of tea, then just go watch 12 Rounds, I guess. Oh, and...


*SPOILER WARNING*


I have to admit I really liked the twist ending. Sure, I sort of predicted that Wilkinson's character wasn't as clueless as he seemed about what was going on, because of the fact that we didn't see as much of him in private talks with others as we saw of his corporate-arch rival, but overall, I thought the denouement was unexpected, especially because the film seemed to be setting things up so that one of the two main characters would pull the rug from underneath the other at the end. Instead, they were both played jointly, making for a great final zoom-out scene, with Clive Owen and Julia Roberts looking thoroughly perplexed, yet fascinated, which is pretty much the way many will probably feel about the film as a whole.

Personally, my expectations of Duplicity were neither high nor low. I think I liked it as much as I thought I would. Duplicity is a film that does have a very complex story that does become a mess on occasions but makes sense towards the conclusion. Duplicity is a film that teaches a very important lesson: make sure you know who you can truly trust. Duplicity is a film that isnt a thriller but has some moments where it does become tense. It has quite a lot of drama within it.


Julia Roberts and Clive Owen did a fine job in masterpiece Closer. They work alongside each other once again. Clive Owen is one of my all-time favourite actors and his performance as Ray in this film is another brilliant one! He has yet to disappoint me in any of his films. Ray is a con man who along with Claire try and double-cross each others bosses for a large sum of money. The only problem they have is that they lack trust in each other despite them sleeping with each other. Julia Roberts was even better as Claire. Seeing her in Duplicity made her look a lot younger than she actually is. She looks about 34-35 in this film when she is really 41-years-old at the time of the film. I personally think that they should be in a Oscar romantic-drama film. Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson were good in this film too.


After Tony Gilroys large success on Michael Clayton, he decides to make a film that is in a similar sort of genre but has different actors and different plot. I didnt like Michael Clayton at all when I saw it but I did enjoy this one more because I understood it more, I love Clive and Julia and also the characters and the way it was filmed was fascinating.


Duplicity isnt one of the best films from neither Julia Roberts nor Clive Owen but its still a good film to watch. It is a pretty underrated film in my opinion. Overall, Duplicity is a good film that I enjoyed but plot became a bit of a mess.

''You on one side, me on the other. It's perfect.''

A pair of corporate spies who share a steamy past hook up to pull off the ultimate con job on their respective bosses.

Clive Owen: Ray Koval

Duplicity comes from Director Tony Gilroy and is also written by him. The beginning starts of in a typical way, that entices said viewer into watching, with it's pair, in the guise of Clive and Julia, plus the two bosses fighting in a surreal, over the top, and heightened way, at a meeting.
This turns out to be a comedic piece combined with a blatant double act of a thriller and a medium paced play on play.

Performances and character wise, Julia Roberts as Claire Stenwick, is the crafty female lead whom teams up with Owen, and boy do they make a lovably effective duo. Getting past the fact Julia has the weirdest lips to look at,she does indeed look dazzling and uses witty dialogue and effective lines. The trouble being this isn't really a role different from any other role she has previously done albeit it's one where she has abit of fun admittedly.
Clive Owen as Ray Koval,really does succeed yet again, at showing us, that this is the guy who should of been Bond. Whether it be the manly gentleman way he acts, his seducing acting, and his usage of high-tech gadgetry, this really sticks it out in the sun to see in a way that is coming all too apparent with every new film Clive does.
When we first meet Claire Stenwick and Ray Koval (Roberts and Owen), they are drinking it up in Dubai at the US consulate. She isn't the least bit interested in him and he is working her as hard as he can. I didn't hear it but he must have said the right thing at some point because they end up in bed together. Of course, she was only sleeping with him so that she could drug him and steal some super secret international spy stuff. And naturally, he put aside all of his super secret spy training and allowed himself to be taken in by her beauty.
He has strength, he is no pansy and he is a typical cliche of sophistication and gruffness.
Moving on to the other players, we have great casting right here, Paul Giamatti, Tom Wilkinson as two corporate bosses get down to it, adding to the sublime acting and Paul reuniting with Clive Owen yet again after the wonderful collaboration with Clive on Shoot Em Up.

The other aspects that shine in Duplicity is the wonderful music,the locations and the witty dialogue.
Director Gilroy's last directorial effort was his first. Michael Clayton earned him respect from critics and contemporaries alike as the film went on to earn a number of Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director. Gilroy enlisted some of the same players he worked with last time out, including composer, James Newton Howard, cinematographer, Robert Elswit and even cast member, Tom Wilkinson, rejoins the gang as the head of one of these soon-to-be-conned corporations. How is it then that when all these wonderful additions got together last time, they achieved such subtle perfection while this time, Howard sounds as though he were ripping off the Ocean 11 through to 13 scores and Elswit is practically washed out?
Perhaps the blame can be placed on Gilroy's most tired screenplay in years. By keeping corporate espionage grounded in reality last time out, he made it fascinating and palatable. By infusing it with Hollywood convention, the whole game was played out before it even began.

Roberts and Owen have shared the screen before in Closer (2004) which was rather more adult, so I heard, yet still need to have the pleasure of viewing. There's a chemistry between the pair which, while not coming close to previous pairings, it is still fun and playful to watch. And this is where the show comes into its own. It's a flimsy, watchable affair that's fun for the most part. Duplicity is predictable, stylish and fun yet for it's flaws it still shines thanks to the killer lines and comedy that ensues.

''You're gaming me!''

"So what do you have to do to get forty million dollars?"

Duplicity - this incredibly witty, intelligent comical crime caper concerning two professional spies with pronounced mutual trust issues - is the second directorial outing of acclaimed screenwriter Tony Gilroy (the man who also scripted the Jason Bourne films). Merging the cold corporate intrigue of Michael Clayton (the writer's Oscar-nominated debut as a director) with the suave, globetrotting antics of the Ocean's trilogy, this effervescent, meticulously plotted heist thriller is dazzling entertainment for a mature audience. The title of Duplicity (meaning deceitfulness) is extremely appropriate for such a twisty motion picture. Rest assured that with Gilroy serving as both writer and director, plot twists are frequent and (similar to Michael Clayton) concessions are rare for those who refuse to pay close attention. Luckily, Gilroy's film is an ultra-slick cinematic creation bursting with intrigue and visual elegance, not to mention it also features an outstanding cast...we're hooked from the very beginning.

The grim depredations of the corporate world may lie at the centre of Gilroy's film once again, but he manages to have loads of fun with them this time. Gilroy establishes the comical tone brilliantly with a slap-happy opening credits sequence featuring two titans of industry (Wilkinson and Giamatti) battling one another (in exaggerated slow motion) on an airport tarmac before their respective private jets as their aghast entourages observe the situation.

The less you know about the plot, the more enjoyable your viewing experience. In a nutshell: the story follows two lovers - CIA agent Claire Stenwick (Roberts) and MI6 agent Ray Koval - who become caught up in a feud between two multinational pharmaceutical companies which threatens to tip over into outright war. With one cosmetics company on the verge of announcing a lucrative, earth-shattering new product that will give them an edge in this battle, Claire and Ray spot an opportunity to strike it rich. They quit their jobs and plan to infiltrate the two organisations with the intention of obtaining the special formula for this new product.
Naturally, not everything goes to plan (it would be less interesting if everything ran perfectly), which amplifies the suspense tenfold in the lead-up to the climax. Viewers will be constantly kept on edge of their seats as the central relationship wavers, and alliances change (as do plans). Who is playing who?

"You on one side, me on the other. It's perfect."

Throughout Duplicity, nothing is as it seems. Characters play each other and plot twists unspool at an alarming rate. All this game playing provides Gilroy with the chance to refashion the debonair, sharp banter of 1930s romantic comedies; updating it to suit a darker, harder edged contemporary context. Accomplishing this tricky high-wire act is nothing short of incredible. Gilroy's dialogue is sizzling and witty. The timeline is very jumpy - leaping from "Five Years Later" to "Ten Days Ago" - and it takes the best part of an hour for all the puzzle pieces to very slowly begin assembling themselves. Gilroy also infuses the drama with an impressive array of surveillance techniques that the two companies utilise in order to pry into the other's business. Whether these methods are true or not remains a mystery, but they're wholly believable in context (as is the unreserved corporate avarice). Interestingly, unless you're very savvy with the film's premise, it may take a while to grasp aspects of the plot. For instance, it isn't made blatantly obvious until the heist occurs that the competing corporations are actually cosmetics companies who employ professional spies in order to get ahead of their competition!
Gilroy directs with elegance; drip-feeding plot details to his audience until the big picture is finally revealed. When he does reveal the product the entire scam concerns, it's frankly absurd. However, Gilroy probably understood that anything would seem silly after all the effort expended, thus he chose a MacGuffin so ludicrous that it's almost a sly wink to an audience.

Duplicity is a deceptively lightweight thriller that will hardly appeal to the masses. While trailers advertised the film as perhaps another Italian Job or Ocean's Eleven, the product is in fact far more sophisticated and slow-paced. No action, no car chases, no shootouts, no explosions...just a well-written story with great actors. Gilroy eschews spy action in favour of verbal gunfire, with colossal chunks of the film devoted to the fine art of banter. Those with a short attention span are advised to look elsewhere. Those willing to indulge in ultra-slick, mature, smart entertainment have come to the right place.

Duplicity isn't necessarily faultless, mind you. There are slight hindrances in Gilroy's screenplay that keep it out of the same league as, say, his own Oscar-nominated Michael Clayton. The major problem is in regards to the sheer ingenuity of the screenplay. Gilroy concentrates on the superb plot twists to such an extent that the complexities of the story prevent it from being genuinely involving.
The two main story elements crammed into the 125-minute runtime are the caper itself, and a romance story between the two leads. Duplicity unfortunately focuses too much on the latter - becoming bogged down during the saggy, plodding middle section which flashes back a bit too frequently to plug into the relationship between Ray & Claire. The protagonists' romance truly needed to be adequately developed for sure, but this overkill hampers the far more interesting main plot. Thankfully, as soon as the film shifts its focus to the caper during the final act, things hit top gear. Gilroy manages to ratchet up the tension and intrigue extremely well here. This tension is skilfully maintained; expertly wringing maximum suspense out of mundane details (a nail-biting hunt for a photocopier, for instance). It's relieving that the sluggish middle act eventually gives way to a rewarding payoff.

Tony Gilroy's films are always ultra-slick, and Duplicity is no different. Robert Elswit's stylish photography as well as James Newton Howard's vibrant, nicely spiced musical score enhance the tactile pleasure of this picture. Craftsmanship is of the highest level. From Kevin Thompson's lavish production design that complements the various locations to Albert Wolsky's smooth costume design, Duplicity is - in every aspect - a film created with complete assurance. Best of all, Gilroy had the flick shot, edited and scored like a sexy '60s caper picture - conga drums & horns, spy jargon and tense moments when a single misplaced step could terminate the entire operation. The fast-paced interaction between the actors, and the usage of split-screens in transitions give Duplicity a lively, hip retro feel that also greatly adds to one's overall enjoyment of the film (once you get past the initial barriers, that is).

At the end of the day, Duplicity - with its knotted narrative and sassy attitude - is more or less a good excuse for Clive Owen and Julia Roberts to engage in some verbal tango for two hours. How you feel about the movie will greatly depend on how you feel about the actors. Reteamed after working together in 2004's Closer, Roberts and Owen generate terrific chemistry as they endearingly steer through their respective characters' insecurities and foibles. The title of Duplicity is particularly fitting on account of the nature of their interaction, as Claire is continuously deceiving Ray and trying to ruin his undercover operations.
Clive Owen, fresh from the similarly globe-trotting The International, serves up yet another taste of how the actor might have played James Bond. Owen's character of Ray is probably the closest he's played to his own real-life persona as he's less angst-ridden than his usual roles. Julia Roberts is back playing the type of character that highlights her strengths as an actress. Think Ocean's Eleven and Twelve.
Tom Wilkinson and Paul Giamatti are perfect casting decisions. Both the actors are delicious as competing, hate-fuelled kings of industry with cutthroat mentalities and egos that know no bounds. Giamatti is particularly excellent; demonstrating the sordid audacity that comes with feeling impervious (most evident in a rousing speech presented to his company's shareholders). Wilkinson is the quieter, almost effeminate head of the opposition. His performance is a standout. The actor was nominated for an Oscar for 2007's Michael Clayton, and he works his magic here once again (despite his role being fairly small).
While Roberts and Owen are apart, they have equally terrific scenes with a wonderful array of supporting players. Roles are filled by strong character actors such as Dennis O'Hare and Tom McCarthy, both of whom played small parts in Michael Clayton. In addition to these actors, Carrie Preston plays a woman from the secretarial pool tricked into helping Ray.

Cramming in enough upscale locations, narrative switchbacks and romantic intrigue to keep an audience fairly rapt, Tony Gilroy's Duplicity is an enjoyable, droll, smart Hollywood escapade. It's hard to believe this is only the writer/director's second directorial undertaking. Gilroy may have taken his time honing his voice as a filmmaker, yet at this stage he appears to have the art down to a science. This heist thriller may not be an award-winner at year's end, but for adults seeking a movie that treats them with genuine respect, there are few films that better fit the bill. Neither a generic spy flick nor a conventional romantic comedy, Duplicity is a satisfying unification of the two genres that's very enjoyable, sophisticated and witty. It may be a frustrating motion picture, but it does - with its conclusion of sheer marvel - ultimately reward you for battling through the saggy middle of the film.

7.3/10