20 for 2009 - Duplicity

It's difficult to say why I'm interested in Duplicity, the latest from Michael Clayton director Tony Gilroy. To begin with I enjoyed the return to 70s intrigue that Gilroy evoked in his 2007 Oscar nominated picture and I thought this tale of corporate skulduggery may be in a similar line.

He assembled a fine cast - Julia Roberts and Clive Owen, reuniting for the first time since Closer, as a pair of corporate spies and Tom Wilkinson and Paul Giamatti as their respective bosses. He brought back most of his team from his previous film including James Newton Howard, Robert Elswitt, John Gilroy and Kevin Thompson.

I'm already interested so I sat and waited for more information to come along.




The information that came was the trailer.



Suddenly this stopped being a boardroom grudge match and became a light hearted rom com with all concerned seeming to have effortless fun. And the conversation between Julia and Clive almost riffs on the scene in Closer when they split up: "Admit it you don't trust me" indeed. Paul Gimatti particularly is having a ball in his limited trailer time.

The best bit is this is the first film from my top 20 I will see. It comes out in the UK on 20 March, just 9 weeks away. Cannot wait.