With the Cold War over, things have got a little dull in the spying game, but for ex-CIA operative Claire Stenwick (Julia Roberts) and former MI6 man Ray Koval (Clive Owen) it's about to heat up. Each presented with the opportunity to use their espionage skills to help rival multinational corporations gets their mitts on an extremely lucrative product, Stenwick and Koval are soon facing off in a battle of wills, wits and dirty tricks. Spurred on by seething CEOs Howard Tully (Tom Wilkinson) and Dick Garsik (Paul Giamatti), the doublecrossing duo soon find themselves doing the unthinkable and falling for each other. As they try to keep their romance under wraps, while competing ruthlessly for the prize, it becomes hard to tell just who is playing who.
Stylish, slick and hugely entertaining, Duplicity features one of the most memorable screen pairings in recent years, with Owen and Roberts making a delightfully sparky couple. Director Tony Gilroy recently won acclaim with the Oscar-winning corporate drama Michael Clayton and he approaches the same subject from a very different, yet equally incisive, angle, lampooning corporate culture and multinational greed with wry, well-observed humour.
Comparable to the likes of The Thomas Crown Affair, Duplicity is sexy, grown-up fun with a great script and a deft directorial touch that is guaranteed to charm your pants off.
Duplicity is a Film programme that first aired in 2009 and has been classified a 12 certificate.
