http://www.atnzone.com/moviezone/reviews/talentedripley.shtml

Grant Hooper
@N-Zone Magazine. c 1999 All reviews contained above are
copyrighted by it's individual authors and may not be
reproduced without their permission.


The Talented Mr. Ripley is an adroit film that is certainly
meritorious of praise, but it is not excellent enough to be
remembered for generations to come. Nor, in my mind, should
it be in the run as an Oscar Contender. Notably with films
like The Green Mile, American Beauty, Magnolia, The Hurricane,
Being John Malkovich, The Insider, and Man on the Moon, which
were all granted my highest A+ Grade. But, knowing the academy,
it probably will be nominated for Best Picture.

We commence the film in New York, where Tom Ripley (Matt Damon)
is posing as someone else. He is wearing a Princeton Jacket,
and he is playing the Piano like a genius for a small private
party. But, this is not Tom’s Life, Nor is it his occupation.
He is simply doing what he does best, which is living other
peoples lives. Little do we know, but just this one little lie
will turn Tom’s life into a disaster area. It embarks by an
elderly man noticing Tom’s Jacket. He approaches Tom and asks
if he knew Dickie Greenleaf from Princeton, to which Tom lies
and says he did. So the man says that Dickie is his son and he
tells Tom he will pay him handsomely if he can bring Dickie back
home to America, from his current life in Italy. Tom agrees, and
he is off to Italy to try to persuade someone he does not even
know, to come back to America.

Tom discovers Dickie’s interests, and he does his homework,
making certain that he will set a good impression on Dickie.
When Tom arrives in Italy, he and Dickie instantaneously click,
and they develop into great friends. The truth is, they become
so close, that Tom becomes entangled in everything, including
Dickie’s personal life with his friends and his fiancee,
Marge, played by Gwyneth Paltrow. But that does not prevent
Dickie from being a first class brat to Tom, which leads to an
act of rage that will turn the plot’s direction entirely.
This will force Tom to begin using his secret talents, which
are telling lies, forging signatures, and impersonating almost
anyone. One inaccuracy will lead to another, and soon Tom finds
himself in too deep, and he cannot turn back from the evil he
has produced.

The storyline is an amazing adaptation of the 1960’s film,
Purple Noon, which is based on the book by Patricia Highsmith.
Anthony Minghella had a winner with his 1996 film, The English
Patient (97 of 100), and he has a winner here. Although not
quit as lush and original than The English Patient, "Ripley"
still deserves our good word. We all know names like "Gone
with the Wind", "The Shawshank Redemption", and "Braveheart",
should we know the name "The Talented Mr. Ripley" 5 years from
now…no, although an excellent film, it is a few steps down
from being perfect, and there is usally at least 5 films per
year that are awarded my perfect grade. So why should we
remember a movie that does not even rank with other films
which are only one step down from perfect?

The acting in the movie is phenomenal, as everyone plays their
parts flawlessly. And Jude Law plays his part beyond perfect,
as it is one of the best performances in years, along with
Billy Bob Thorton in 1998’s a "Simple Plan", and Haley Joel
Osment in 1999’s "The Sixth Sense". Matt Damon portrays the
character of Tom Ripley beautifully and he should earn himself
an Oscar nomination. Gwyneth Paltrow did very well, but an
Oscar Nomination is questionable, and the same with Cate
Blanchett. All in all, the cast makes a very large contribution
to making this film as wonderful as it was. With all this said,
in a nutshell…The Talented Mr. Ripley will have you at the
edge of your seat for the entire film. If you are a
perfectionist, do not see this flick, because as I mentioned
earlier, it is far from perfect. But, if you are someone looking
for a good time, and looking for a fairly entertaining movie
that is extremely well-made, this one is for you. Although
sometimes long, sometimes dark, and sometimes uninviting, The
Talented Mr. Ripley earns my approval with a B.