(laughs) Exactly! And you never know if Julia’s character is telling the truth. In fact, you might assume they are lying to each other in every scene…

What kind of director was Tony?

He’s a very good collaborator who has become a really good friend. He’s amazingly assured, too. I couldn’t believe how together he was. On Duplicity his instincts, his taste, his decision making and his choice of shots were just clear and right on the button all the time. I was kind of taken aback with him, it was like ‘how can this be your second movie? I don’t understand where you get this from?’ Maybe it’s because he’s written so many scripts and he’s so sure of what movies are, what the beats and rhythms are. But for a guy who had only directed one film at that point, he was incredibly accomplished.

Did he take ideas from you?

He always listened. He’s not precious in the slightest but I’m telling you now, there were very few changes. The dialogue was so good I wasn’t going to mess with it. I make notes on every script I do.  When I start a movie I go through it meticulously, especially the dialogue, to see whether the rhythm is right, if there are too many words, whether it needs something else. I went through Duplicity without making a single note. Nothing. We got together to talk about the script and I hardly had anything to say except ‘it’s brilliant!’

In terms of genre, how would you describe Duplicity?

I’d say it’s a banter movie. That’s the key, banter. It’s the backwards and forwards, to-ing and fro-ing. I’m wary of describing it as a romantic comedy because it’s not - it’s not cute enough for that. It’s very, very witty and very, very smart.

Are you a fan of DVDs?

Oh yes. I’ve got an amazing wealth of movies. A lot of old films that I need to catch up on. But I never watch DVDs on a plane, I like to see them at home on a proper screen. I’m a movie fan and if you love movies, then DVDs are just fantastic.

Check out what Julia Roberts had to say about the film and her co-star here

FemaleFirst - Ruth Harrison

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