This is a good old-fashioned piece of escapist entertainment lacking the usual violence and thuggery with two very photogenic leads and plenty of comic support. The plot, though, is way more complicated than it need have been. Unless I've missed something (which is quite likely), there's at least one important aspect that remains unexplained, but it didn't hit me until I walked out of the cinema, so my suspension of disbelief at least lasted through the 2 hour running time. Tony Gilroy, the writer-director, is best known for the action-filled Bourne films. There is plenty of action and suspense here too, but also some slow patches – to some extent this is due to the requirements of romantic comedy which has been mixed in to the action formula. The confusion is added to by the over-use of flashbacks which seem to contradict what we have seen earlier.
As the distrustful lovers, Clive Owen and Julia Roberts are totally convincing; I would suggest neither of their spouses see the film. Julia does things quietly, and is the more effective for it. Clive has no trouble establishing himself as a sex magnet, though strangely enough it is shared interests and attitudes rather than sex which keep them together (although we are told the sex is great).
The story itself is wound our heroes' plan to exploit the insane competition between two huge corporations making bathroom products. One of them, with a name that sounds like Proctor and Gamble, is run by a lordly CEO called Howard Tully played by Tom Wilkinson, the other Equiklunk (or something) is run by Richard Garsink, played by Paul Giamatti, who is more of a street fighter. A sight gag at the start – a fight between the two of them at an airport – establishes that their competition is personal. The shampoo business is just a means to an end – victory for one, humiliation for the other. While Wilkinson is no more than OK as Tully, Giamatti hugely enjoys himself as the driven Garsink almost to the point of caricature. The underlings are also a lot of fun.
Naturally there is plenty of elegant scenery – five star hotels, casinos and resorts, executive jets, huge offices, as well as the streets of Manhattan. Tully has an office you could put a bowling alley in, while Garsink, a lover of disguise, actually goes to a bowling alley to consult with his security operatives. Yet the picture of the world of the private spy is less than alluring. The problem is the same as other areas of private practice – awful clients. It would take a very large amount of money to make me want to make the world safe for a brand of shampoo, even if it had miraculous properties. At bottom though this is romance and without giving the ending away it's a fair bet our distrustful couple will find romance, if not the pot of gold.
As the distrustful lovers, Clive Owen and Julia Roberts are totally convincing; I would suggest neither of their spouses see the film. Julia does things quietly, and is the more effective for it. Clive has no trouble establishing himself as a sex magnet, though strangely enough it is shared interests and attitudes rather than sex which keep them together (although we are told the sex is great).
The story itself is wound our heroes' plan to exploit the insane competition between two huge corporations making bathroom products. One of them, with a name that sounds like Proctor and Gamble, is run by a lordly CEO called Howard Tully played by Tom Wilkinson, the other Equiklunk (or something) is run by Richard Garsink, played by Paul Giamatti, who is more of a street fighter. A sight gag at the start – a fight between the two of them at an airport – establishes that their competition is personal. The shampoo business is just a means to an end – victory for one, humiliation for the other. While Wilkinson is no more than OK as Tully, Giamatti hugely enjoys himself as the driven Garsink almost to the point of caricature. The underlings are also a lot of fun.
Naturally there is plenty of elegant scenery – five star hotels, casinos and resorts, executive jets, huge offices, as well as the streets of Manhattan. Tully has an office you could put a bowling alley in, while Garsink, a lover of disguise, actually goes to a bowling alley to consult with his security operatives. Yet the picture of the world of the private spy is less than alluring. The problem is the same as other areas of private practice – awful clients. It would take a very large amount of money to make me want to make the world safe for a brand of shampoo, even if it had miraculous properties. At bottom though this is romance and without giving the ending away it's a fair bet our distrustful couple will find romance, if not the pot of gold.