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Visual:		8.0
Audio:		8.0
Acting:		6.0
Writing:		8.0
Score:		8.0

Director(s):	Tony Gilroy
Writer(s):	Tony Gilroy
Starring:	Clive Owen • Julia Roberts • Paul Giamatti • Tom Wilkinson
Genre:	Romance • Thriller
Website:	http://www.duplicitymovie.net
Release Date:	March 20, 2009
Rated:

I did not think that any other title sequence in a movie this year could top Watchmen’s as my favorite, yet here we are, only two weeks later and already I found one. Duplicity’s title sequence depicts a silent slow-motion brawl between Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson pressed in their business attires, as James Newton Howard’s hoppy jazzy score takes over. It’s strangely hypnotic and hilarious, but it also—like Watchmen’s—sets up the film’s mood and premise.

The premise is that Dick Garsik (Giamatti) and Howard Tully (Wilkinson) are billionaire CEOs engaging in childish rivalry over who’s got the biggest swinging, er, profit margin. Howard’s company is on the verge of releasing a groundbreaking top secret product, persuading the resentful Dick to hire a crack team of spies—to find out what it is and possibly steal it. Enter our loving, or would-be, spy couple: CIA agent Claire (Julia Roberts) and MI6 agent Ray (Clive Owen), both masters of lies and deception, now working in the private sector for bigger rewards. These two are in a romantic bind. How do you nurture a healthy relationship when both parties spent their adult lives perfecting the art of distrust?

Duplicity is a film full of deceivers and pretenders, and the film itself is no exception. It pretends to be a romantic comedy by following the tired meet-cute formula at first, conning any viewer expecting the film to be familiar, then revealing itself to be a corporate thriller instead. It’s Michael Clayton’s little sister; more lighthearted and playful than the somber big brother, but without sacrificing the boardroom setting’s complexity or Tony Gilroy’s typically smart and calculative characters.

It’s a strange movie. It acts like it’s cute and witty, but it’s neither—yet it works anyway. There’s not a lot of humor; what is there earns more of a grin than a laugh. There are no sparks flying between Roberts and Owen. Their chemistry is off and their attraction to each other hard to swallow, but it’s that ill-fated pairing that works to the authenticity of the characters. At one point, Ray and Claire come to the realization that they can never fully trust each other like couples are supposed to. “We’re not like normal people,” Ray tells Claire after a long bout of suspicious mindgame probing that follows a three-day sex romp (you know, the usual). Their relationship is not likely to be about vows and faith. It’s about planned exits and contingencies, believed to be true because it’s been tested.

Knowing the details of the plot beforehand only undermine how impressive the film is put together. It’s convoluted on purpose, at times appearing to be way too clever for its own good, but doesn’t contradict itself, which allows the plot to advance smoothly. Whenever you think a scene doesn’t make sense given what was established before, a hidden agenda is just around the corner, ready to let you know that you’ve just been conned. It defies the pitfalls of having one twist too many by basing its entire narrative on smartly crafted twists. Even the exposition is woven into a twist. Heck, the very nature of the romance relies on a twist.

Better yet, it hides one last twist from our two protagonists for a surprise ending, dousing those in the audience who believe “love conquers all” with cold water. Love connects people, but hardly gives you the upper hand. For that, money and influence still matter. That’s where Gilroy’s strengths come into play, delving into this world of fat cats who shed morality and responsibility for want of… what? Ego? Profit? Bragging rights?

There’s a telling scene where Dick, on his way to meet his spies in their secret hideout, checks his body double for the day. His double bears only a slight passing resemblance to him, for it’s likely that said double would only be seen through a car window by whoever's watching; but Dick insists on stopping to straighten the double’s tie. In Dick's world, even the appearance of a CEO’s double is important to maintain the company’s image.

I couldn’t help but think that, on some level, the love game is played the same way.