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"DUPLICITY" (2009) (Clive Owen, Julia Roberts) (PG-13) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons Moderate None Heavy Minor None Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Minor None Minor None *Moderate Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Heavy None None Moderate Mild QUICK TAKE: Drama: Two former government spies turned corporate operatives aren't certain they can trust each when they enter into a sexual and business relationship while working for rival companies. PLOT: Ray Koval (CLIVE OWEN) and Claire Stenwick (JULIA ROBERTS) are former government spies -- he worked for MI6, she for the CIA -- who ran into each other back in 2003, fell into bed, and he ended up drugged by her so that she could lift top-secret info from him. Having met several times since then for repeated trysts in various locales, they now work for the heads of competing corporations that will do anything to undermine the other. Richard Garsik (PAUL GIAMATTI) would seem to have the upper-hand at that as he's hired a team of experts in corporate espionage -- including Ray, his boss Duke Monahan (DENIS O'HARE) and others -- to find out what Howard Tully (TOM WILKINSON) and his company have in the product release pipeline. Tully's asked Claire and others to protect their newest release, with the catch being that her counter-intelligence team has no idea what that is. To complicate matters, she and Ray have secretly teamed up -- not only in the bedroom, but also the boardroom of sorts -- with hopes of stealing the corporate secret for their own financial gain. But there's only one obstacle -- beyond not letting anyone else know of their double-cross - standing in their way, and that is that they're not sure they can even trust each other. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? They might be interested if they're fans of anyone in the cast and/or caper-type espionage flicks. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13 For language and some sexual content. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: CLIVE OWEN plays a former MI6 officer turned corporate spy who now works for Richard's team that's trying to figure out what Howard is preparing to release. He'll do whatever it takes to get info, including sleeping with strangers. But his long-standing affair is with Claire, and their relationship extends from personal to business as they plot to double-cross those who employ them. Yet, he doesn't fully trust her or anyone, thus complicating his plan. He also uses profanity and drinks some. JULIA ROBERTS plays his counterpart for the competition and secret lover & business partner who was once a CIA agent, but now works for Howard. She uses some profanity, drinks, and has sex with Ray, but can't trust him completely. TOM WILKINSON plays her boss, the head of a consumer product-based corporation who's about to reveal something big, and wants Claire and her team to protect those interests without telling her what it is. He's briefly seen fighting with Richard at the beginning of the film. PAUL GIAMATTI plays his chief competitor who will do anything to discover what Howard's product is and then steal the idea before it hits the market. Beyond briefly fighting with Howard, he uses profanity, briefly drinks, and comes off as a ruthless corporate head. DENIS O'HARE plays Ray's boss who keeps a suspicious eye on him. He briefly drinks. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a brief summary of the content found in this drama that's been rated PG-13. Profanity consists of what appear to be several mouthed "f" words (in slow motion) and 7 spoken "s" words, while other expletives and colorful phrases are also uttered. Sexually related dialogue is present, as are several sexual encounters that are implied or take place off-camera. Partial nudity (breasts, butt) is also briefly present. There's a brief fight shown in slow motion, as well as some other contact, but nothing severe or graphic. Characters drink in several scenes, one is drugged by an unknown substance, and there's a brief drug-related comment, while bad attitudes are present. Should you still be concerned about the film's appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home, you may want to look more closely at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. For those prone to visually induced motion sickness, there's a spin-around camera shot, as well as some handheld camera movement in the film. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE Ray, Claire and others have drinks. When he's seemingly coming on to her, she says maybe he's drunk, but he replies if he was, he would be coming on to her. We next see her picking up her panties off the floor, he's asleep/passed out/drugged in bed (shirtless) and she pours champagne from the bottle into a sink. About their meeting in Dubai, Ray reminds Claire that it involved red wine and blue margaritas. Claire and Ray have drinks. Claire talks of people dealing ecstasy when not doing something else. Ray opens some champagne. Miscellaneous people have drinks. Ray pretends to be someone else in order to pick up one of Howard's workers at a bar, use his charm to distract her, and get valuable info from her. This begins when he "accidentally" spills her drink. He asks what it was and then orders two "Apple-tinis." One of Ray's associates has a drink in a casino (where miscellaneous people also drink), and there's talk of the young man he and Ray are trailing playing baccarat whenever he's sober. We then see the young man drinking and he may be dozing or has passed out at the gambling table. Ray opens some champagne for Claire and himself. Howard makes a comment about something and when people don't drink themselves into a stupor. Claire opens champagne for Ray. Claire mentions another man being Duke's drinking buddy. Richard and Ray have beer in a bowling alley where we see a neon sign for a certain type of beer. Thinking they've succeeded, Duke and various members of his team, including Ray, celebrate with beer. Ray pours some champagne and Claire says she wants a sip. Champagne is delivered, opened and poured for Ray and Claire, but we don't see them drink any. BLOOD/GORE None. DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE Richard has a team of spies working for him, bugging Howard's office equipment, putting moles on his team, etc., all to try to steal his latest product before it's released. Ray pretends to be someone else in order to pick up one of Howard's workers at a bar, use his charm to distract her (including apparently having sex), and get valuable info from her. There's talk of a young businessman plagiarizing something, but we don't know if that's true or not. Some corporate spies try to steal from those employing them to spy on the competition. FRIGHTENING SCENES While an alleged inside spy on Howard's operation is handcuffed, Claire puts tape across his eyes and mouth and hurries off to find a machine Richard's team has tapped (so that she can send info back to them). They race to find one she can access, with her (and Ray back in the other building) worrying about her running out of time and getting caught by security that caught the first man. GUNS/WEAPONS None. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "(That is total) Bullsh*t," "It's gonna look like sh*t," "You screwed me," "You're the biggest swinging d*ck I've ever seen," "You screwed her...I can't believe you screwed her," "I'm a horn-dog," "Who the hell are you?" "Screw this up," "Get a team up his ass," "Get the hell out of here," "What the hell /is this/does he have/does that mean/are you doing?" "What a bunch of crap," "How freaking pretentious is that?" "Don't go dark on me," "Are you out of your frickin' mind?" "He couldn't hear the sound of his cajones as they hit the G*ddamn floor," "This sucks," "Beats the hell out of..." "What the hell's down there?" "Too G*ddamn long," "I am totally cooked," "You bitch" (said playfully), "God, you smell good," "She's one cold, nasty piece of work," "The bitch put me through the ringer," "I don't give a damn," "Bloody" (adjective), "Pissed off," "Shut up," "You're gonna burn, asshole," "Where the hell you been?" "The hell with that" and "Damn if I know." The film might inspire some kids to spy on others. JUMP SCENES None. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) A little bit of suspenseful music plays in the film. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) None. PROFANITY At least 2 possible mouthed "f" words (seen in super slow-motion), 7 "s" words, 5 slang terms for sex ("screw"), 1 slang term using male genitals ("d*ck"), 24 hells, 5 asses (1 used with "hole"), 5 damns, 1 crap, 6 uses each of "For Christ's sakes" and "G-damn," 3 each of "Jesus" and "Oh my God," 2 each of "God" and "Oh Jesus," and 1 use each of "My God" and "Oh God." SEX/NUDITY Ray, Claire and others have drinks. When he's seemingly coming on to her, she says maybe he's drunk, but he replies if he was, he would be coming on to her. We next see her picking up her panties off the floor, he's asleep/passed out/drugged in bed (shirtless) and she pours champagne from the bottle into a sink. Claire shows varying amounts of cleavage from time to time in different outfits. When Claire acts as if she's never met him, Ray says that while he's okay with names and such, the one thing he always remembers is those he's slept with. He then states that she "screwed" and drugged him, and asks who paid her to sleep with him. After making a comment about hanging out a window by the feet, Ray segues that into a sexual comment about Claire and her being used to having her heels in the air. Later, Duke and another team member laugh about that comment. About another person, Richard states "He couldn't hear the sound of his cajones (testicles) as they hit the G*ddamn floor." Among other things, we hear that Duke's team is monitoring pornography searches done by Howard's staff. We see a flashback of Ray and Claire meeting, with her again acting as if she doesn't remember him, and him repeating the above line about always remembering those he's slept with, as well as another sexual use of the term "screw." They then head off, we see a door being closed, and sex is implied. We next see him in just a towel and then removing that (nothing seen) before getting back in bed with her (she's under the sheets, but we see some of her bare back). He states that they've been bad but are very good at it (possibly referring to sex, but maybe referring to their business plans), and then kisses her on the back of her neck and pulls the sheet down to kiss her bare back. When she realizes what time it is, she gets up and hurriedly dresses, and we see a partial side view of her bare breast (she's facing away from the camera), as well as a partial bare butt cheek view as she puts on her skirt. They then get into a bit of an argument, with him thinking she's actually conning him, with her replying it's been three days and then asks what the objective would be: "Rug burn?" Ray pretends to be someone else in order to pick up one of Howard's workers at a bar, use his charm to distract her, and get valuable info from her. That involves drinks and then returning to her office where they apparently have sex off-screen. Later, someone comments on the one "where they're on the desk" and we see a few black and white surveillance style photos of them standing close, including one where her shirt is off, but all we see is her bra strap across her back. Later, when Claire interrogates her for Howard, the woman enthusiastically says that fling was worth it (possibly losing her job). In a flashback, Ray and Claire passionately kiss (clothed) in London, with him telling her she feels good. Ray and Claire meet in Miami, and he comments, "God, you smell good." About Ray, Duke states he is the "biggest swinging d*ck" he's ever seen. Claire unexpectedly drops in on Ray, and then holds up thong panties, asking, "Are these hers?" and saying she found them in the closet. Ray says he has no idea who they belong to, with Claire continuing to press him until she relents and says she'll just put them back on, notifying him that she was just testing him. Ray is a bit upset by that, but Claire asks if he's also "kind of turned on too?" and then says she only has 55 minutes to make it up to him. About the above woman Ray slept with to get valuable company info, Claire tells him, "You screwed her...I can't believe you screwed her." He says that was part of the job and that his cover is "I'm a horn-dog." Ray and Claire passionately kiss while clothed. We see Ray rehearing his above "people I've slept with" speech, with him including the sexual use of "screwed." He then says he's "filling a gap" in the chain of command, with Claire (in bed) suggestively telling him to come back there to her and say that (meant sexually). SMOKING None. TENSE FAMILY SCENES None. TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT Corporate espionage. Ray's comment that nobody trusts anybody. Howard's speech about the first person who made fire being the most powerful person in the world at that time. Howard stating he believes in corporate evolution. VIOLENCE During the opening credits, we see slow-motion footage of Richard and Howard approaching and yelling at each other. Howard pushes his finger into Richard's chest, with Richard swiping that aside and then kicking Howard's leg. Howard then pushes Richard back and the two struggle, ending with Howard flipping Richard to the pavement. He then hurts his hand when his punch misses Richard and hits the hard surface instead. A man trails Ray on the city streets, but thanks to the coordinated work of his allies, one ends up bumping into and knocking that other man down. When Claire acts as if she's never met him, Ray grabs her by the arm to prevent her from leaving. Casino security guards pin one of Ray's associates to a bar counter by his head. Richard's computer guy trips and falls, but seems to be okay. An alleged inside spy on Howard's operation is handcuffed to some office furniture that he ends up pulling over on himself while trying to escape. Reviewed March 13, 2009 / Posted March 20, 2009

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