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DUPLICITYMovie Reviews
Thriller about two spies-turned-business operatives on either side of an all-out corporate war and in the midst of a clandestine love affair. Cast:Julia Roberts, Clive Owen, Tom Wilkinson, Paul GiamattiDirector:Tony GilroyRelease Date:March 20, 2009DVD Release:August 25, 2009From:UniversalRating:PG-13Length:2 hr. 5 min.
Duplicity played to very good reviews. • Colin Covert wrote in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, "...audiences will find their assumptions challenged, their suspicions rewarded, their powers of observation tested and their expectations deliciously overturned." • And David Denby wrote in the New Yorker, "...an enormously enjoyable hybrid, a romantic comedy set at the center of a caper movie." More Reviews Below...
Leah Rozen, People: VERY GOOD(cg) "...tremendous fun... 'Duplicity's' charm lies in creating a high-stakes game even if nothing of consequence -- unless you're a corporate stockholder -- is at stake."(See all of Leah Rozen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 198 words, 03/19/09
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: VERY GOOD(cg) " 'Duplicity' doesn't have depth -- but it does have Julia Roberts... benefits from prescription-strength chemistry between leading lady and leading man."(See all of Lisa Schwarzbaum's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 691 words, 03/20/09
Christy Lemire, Associated Press: VERY GOOD(cg) "...the myriad twists and turns will probably make your head spin and you won't see the last one coming. But if you do, hey, bravo to you for being so crafty yourself."(See all of Christy Lemire's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 627 words, 03/19/09
Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: EXCELLENT(cg) "Owen is refreshingly sleek... Roberts is wonderfully mature, mixing some of Erin Brockovich's been-there-done-that attitude with a sly 'Pretty Woman' smirk."(See all of Joe Neumaier's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 457 words, 03/20/09
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: VERY GOOD(cg) "...so ingenious that at the end, we know more or less what happened, but mostly less. That's fun, but it deprives Roberts of her most winning note, which is lovability."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 489 words, 03/19/09
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "A throwback to the days of old-school caper movies like 'To Catch a Thief'... just the kind of sophisticated amusement you would expect from filmmaker Tony Gilroy."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 763 words, 03/20/09
Lou Lumenick, New York Post: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...whip-smart, sexy and delightfully twisty... Roberts is a formidable actress, but, at 41, she finally seems comfortable being a movie star, as well."(See all of Lou Lumenick's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 589 words, 03/19/09
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: VERY GOOD(cg) "...you'll probably enjoy 'Duplicity' even as its narrative starts coiling around itself like a snake.... Gilroy's a crafty writer and an increasingly assured director."(See all of Michael Phillips's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 757 words, 03/20/09
Rafer Guzman, New York Newsday: MODERATE(cg) "...it never quite gets the blood pumping.... despite all the husky-voiced pillow-talk about sex and adrenaline, there's little of either."(See all of Rafer Guzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 331 words, 03/20/09
Rick Groen, Toronto Globe & Mail: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a formula flick that plays with the formula, a breezy romantic thriller that simultaneously exploits and explodes the genre's familiar conventions."(See all of Rick Groen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 755 words, 03/20/09
Scott Foundas, Village Voice/LA Weekly: OUTSTANDING "...a comedy -- about two people who love each other more than they could ever trust each other -- and a superb one at that."(See all of Scott Foundas's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 671 words, 03/18/09
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "It's charming and shiny, and after about an hour you figure out that it's utterly empty. The plot is all meaningless switchbacks and reversals..."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 225 words, 03/19/09
KEY CITIES (17 Reviews)
Dan Kois, Washington Post: EXCELLENT(cg) "...a pleasant big-studio diversion, a screwball romance with beautiful movie stars... It's smart, it's for grown-ups and it lets Julia Roberts laugh, if just once."(See all of Dan Kois's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 773 words, 03/20/09
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: MODERATE(cg) "...intriguing enough. But it eventually falls victim to one or two twists too many, needlessly complicating an already complex plot."(See all of Bill Goodykoontz's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 513 words, 03/20/09
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: POOR(cg) "The good actors give 'Duplicity' the sheen of quality. So do the movie's various locations... The picture has everything but a good script and good direction."(See all of Mick LaSalle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 612 words, 03/20/09
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...at a certain point (for me, it was Rome), boredom sets in. The moves are fancy - reversal, twist, reversal, twist - but what's the point?"(See all of Steven Rea's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 588 words, 03/20/09
Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a business-like conspiracy thriller. But the conspiracy here is pitched in the key of romantic faith... Rarely has distrust been trumped up as such a sex fetish."(See all of Wesley Morris's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 855 words, 03/20/09
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...audiences will find their assumptions challenged, their suspicions rewarded, their powers of observation tested and their expectations deliciously overturned."(See all of Colin Covert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 452 words, 03/20/09
Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson are perfection... And Gilroy, who's only directed two films and yet is clearly a master of pacing and style, makes it all look easy."(See all of Moira Macdonald's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 507 words, 03/20/09
Clint O'Connor, Cleveland Plain-Dealer: VERY GOOD(cg) "...entertaining escapist fare, though Gilroy pumps in a lot of diabolical double-dealing that seems like wasted effort. In the end, it's not that clever."(See all of Clint O'Connor's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 449 words, 03/20/09
Mike Russell, Portland Oregonian: VERY GOOD(cg) "Gilroy's technique can feel like complication for complication's sake, but stick with the story and the dramatic rewards are real, or at least the punch line's pretty clever."(See all of Mike Russell's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 195 words, 03/20/09
Calvin Wilson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: VERY GOOD(cg) "...very much in the spirit of such classics as 'North By Northwest' and 'Charade'.... may be too smart for its own good. But how many films can you say that about?"(See all of Calvin Wilson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 316 words, 03/20/09
Steve Persall, St. Petersburg Times: FAIR(cg) "Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson co-star as the corporate creeps being served or set up, in tandem or individually, in a movie that just keeps shuffling those shells."(See all of Steve Persall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 447 words, 03/19/09
Connie Ogle, Miami Herald: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...a thinking person's caper, and, as such, it deserves credit for its jaunty cerebral style, even if it turns out to be unnecessarily complicated and sometimes nonsensical."(See all of Connie Ogle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 457 words, 03/20/09
Carla Meyer, Sacramento Bee: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Roberts and Owen create a charisma bubble... when the picture fans out to include more characters, 'Duplicity' falters in tone as well as clarity."(See all of Carla Meyer's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 695 words, 03/20/09
Michael Sragow, Baltimore Sun: VERY GOOD(cg) "...exposes its heavy narrative machinery... yet it succeeds because of the dexterity of Tony Gilroy, the writer-director, and the star power of Owen and Roberts."(See all of Michael Sragow's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 605 words, 03/20/09
Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post: VERY GOOD(cg) "...rife with fine performances, smart but not overly ironic repartee and a Rubik's Cube of a story line.... bears more than a passing likeness to 'Mr. and Mrs. Smith'..."(See all of Lisa Kennedy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 734 words, 03/20/09
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (6 Reviews)
Scott Foundas, Village Voice/LA Weekly: OUTSTANDING "...a comedy -- about two people who love each other more than they could ever trust each other -- and a superb one at that."(See all of Scott Foundas's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 671 words, 03/18/09
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...bright mischief with a dark streak that runs down to its core. Gilroy and his stars make it elegant fun to be fooled, but they sure as hell make you work for it."(See all of Peter Travers's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 565 words, 03/20/09
Peter Keough, Boston Phoenix: MODERATE(cg) "Let's just say that Gilroy is no Ernst Lubitsch when it comes to sophisticated, saucy effervescence. Or a Hitchcock, either."(See all of Peter Keough's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 334 words, 03/19/09
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "It's charming and shiny, and after about an hour you figure out that it's utterly empty. The plot is all meaningless switchbacks and reversals..."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 225 words, 03/19/09
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: GOOD "...betrayed by a surfeit of intricacy. Its ironic complexities tease the brain without pleasing the heart.... the movie lacks the essential ingredient of emotional resonance."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 594 words, 03/20/09
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "A throwback to the days of old-school caper movies like 'To Catch a Thief'... just the kind of sophisticated amusement you would expect from filmmaker Tony Gilroy."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 763 words, 03/20/09
MOVIE INDUSTRY (5 Reviews)
Todd McCarthy, Daily Variety: OUTSTANDING "Smart, droll and dazzling to look at and listen to... effervescent, intricately plotted puzzler proves in every way superior to Gilroy's 2007 success 'Michael Clayton.' "(See all of Todd McCarthy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,152 words, 03/17/09
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "A throwback to the days of old-school caper movies like 'To Catch a Thief'... just the kind of sophisticated amusement you would expect from filmmaker Tony Gilroy."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 763 words, 03/20/09
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: GOOD "...betrayed by a surfeit of intricacy. Its ironic complexities tease the brain without pleasing the heart.... the movie lacks the essential ingredient of emotional resonance."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 594 words, 03/20/09
19.1 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Duplicity's reviews are separated by an average 19.1 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
Duplicity (43 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Duplicity's reviews cover 79.4% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 24,417 words involume (average is 20,172 words). Length:The film's reviews average 568 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 3.8 Hours Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Duplicity's reviews on average broke 3.8 hours before opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is Duplicity's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
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