Duplicity is a Hollywood political mystery released on Prime Video on March 20, 2025. Written and Directed by Tyler Perry, it has a runtime of 1 hour and 49 minutes. The movie follows Lawyer Marley Wells as she navigates the political environment surrounding the murder of her best friend’s husband.
Spoiler Alert: This review contains key plot details. Proceed with caution if you haven’t seen Duplicity.
Premise of Duplicity
The film opens with a gym session featuring our main characters; Fela, Marley (Fela’s best friend), Kevin (who is unsuccessfully vying for Fela’s attention), and Tony (Marley’s boyfriend).
Marley and Fela briefly talk about Fela’s husband Rodney and possible issues in their marriage. Marley then persuades Fela to invite Rodney for breakfast so that she and Tony can hold an intervention for them. Rodney does show up, and it seems like he and Tony don’t really get along. Both couples briefly discuss their relationships before they all part ways to their daily lives.
At the same time, the local police station has their early morning briefing done by Kevin, who is the commanding officer. Kevin latches on to a Caucasian rookie officer, Shannon, and informs him that they are both on field patrol for the day.
Later that morning, while Fela works as a news anchor, Rodney goes on his morning run. His route takes him to an affluent and predominantly Caucasian neighbourhood, strolling through the alleyways. In one of the houses, an elderly Caucasian woman gets an anonymous call, warning her of his presence.
"There's a black man in a hoodie outside your house. You should call 911."
The woman proceeds to do, describing it to the police as a “break-in” into her neighbour’s house. The response is immediate, dispatching the nearest officers, who happen to be Kevin and Shannon, to the scene.
When the officers first find Rodney, who was still just strolling, they order him to get down and put his hands up. He doesn’t hear them at first due to his head phones blaring loudly. Noticing them, he attempts to pull out his phone, presumably to pause the music. However, the officers assume that he intends to pull out a gun, and proceed to shoot him first.
Fela, who is still live on-air, unknowingly begins to announce the shooting as a Breaking news headline until she realises, via the teleprompter, that the victim is her own husband. The news show abruptly cuts to commercial and she rushes to the hospital, where she is later joined by an equally distraught Marley.
Fela is furious after discovering that Kevin was there as it happened and Kevin begins to pin it on Shannon as a racially motivated decision. They are still in confrontation when the doctor arrives and confirms Rodney’s passing.
Marley, who is a renowned lawyer, vows to hold the city and its police department accountable with a strong lawsuit, hoping to get a substantial monetary settlement that would help Fela financially. She is offered assistance by Tony (who is a private investigator), and mutual friend Sam, who is an investigative journalist.
And thus, Marley begins to make her case, despite resistance from various sources, including her own boyfriend. However, this leads to a vicious rollercoaster of secrets, lies and betrayal, including the true reasons for Rodney’s death and a shocking reveal of the culprit(s).
Cast and Performances
Duplicity features a predominantly black cast, as is typical for Tyler Perry movies. Our main roster includes:
- Kat Graham as Marley
- Meagan Tandy as Fela
- Tyler Lepley as Tony
- Joshua Adeyeye as Rodney
- RonReaco Lee as Kevin
- And Shannon Lanier as Officer Shannon
Let’s talk about the acting. Kat Graham is no doubt a talented actress. She is most known for her performance as Bonnie in the popular supernatural franchise The Vampire Diaries. However, I can’t help but feel like she was not a good fit for this movie. Her acting was mediocre at best and some scenes were downright difficult to watch. She gives her best though, and there is only so much one can do with such a horrendous plotline. Not to mention, her supporting cast did a great job in balancing out the dynamics of the film.
With regard to the character Kat Graham portrays, I can’t say too much lest I risk major spoilers, but I appreciated Marley’s character, even though it lacked some depth. She’s a lawyer with trust issues. That’s it. That’s the entire character. It sounds pretty one-dimensional right? Because it is.
What I liked about Duplicity
I’ll be honest, there’s not much I can say that I liked about this film. I do appreciate the cinematography and choice of location. And the film itself was well-paced in the beginning. I appreciate the inclusion of successful black female characters that weren’t unnecessarily mean and catty all in the name of being ambitious. From Marley, to Fela, to the District attorney, not a housewife in sight, and I love that for them.
What I Didn’t Like
I will attempt to remain logical and concise as I explain this: This plot was ridiculous. And you only realise how ridiculous it is the closer you get to the ending. And it could’ve been more. It could have been so much more!
It was perfectly set up to be a key feature in addressing one of the biggest issues that plague the land; racism and racial profiling. The movie made all the right moves, had all the right factors in play and then destroyed it all in one fell swoop with such a half-assed attempt at a plot twist. And the painful thing is, the plot twist doesn’t even make any sense when looking at the grand scheme of things. If anything, it only birthed more plot holes.
The icing on the cake was the ending monologue by the main character, which allowed us to understand the true lesson we were supposed to learn. And can I just say: I am not impressed.
It’s also the principle of the situation as well. This movie and the messages it promotes might set a very dangerous political precedent when dealing with real life scenarios that involve things like this. If the wrong kind of people find justification in this movie, then we are in for a long dark turn.
Final Thoughts
I expected better from Tyler Perry. For a man who gave us Acrimony and plunged the world into an eternal debate, this is less than mediocre of him. However I still have hope for a redemption (another Madea project, perhaps?)
I rate Tyler Perry’s Duplicity: 2 out of 5.
Be the first to comment