THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY

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An impostor in pretty Italy: 'Mr. Ripley' a study in character

By Jack Garner
Democrat and Chronicle


(Dec. 24, 1999) -- As jazz musicians will tell you, it's important
to be able to "fake it" -- to work your way around a musical problem
as if you know what you're doing.

Fittingly, jazz is a key part of the ambience in The Talented Mr.
Ripley, because the title character's chief talent is faking it. And
we're not just talking about music.

As Matt Damon's character, Tom Ripley, says, "I'd rather be a fake
somebody than a real nobody."

That's why he pretends to be part of a gang of snotty, upscale
twentysomethings who are cavorting on the beaches, yacht decks and
dance floors of romantic Italy in the 1950s.

But each layer of deception brings its own dangers -- until Ripley
becomes a murderer to keep his illusion alive.

The Talented Mr. Ripley is considered a suspense mystery, adapted
from a highly regarded thriller from Patricia Highsmith. But
filmmaker Anthony Minghella -- and presumably Highsmith -- aren't
as interested in the mechanics of a mystery as they are with an
intricate character study.

But that also means The Talented Mr. Ripley will disappoint filmgoers
who see the bloodied bodies and expect a hard-and-fast resolution to
Ripley's murderous ways. No such luck. Nothing is tied up in a bow.

In fact, after a fabulous opening hour or so, Ripley gradually runs
out of steam and concludes with an overextended, inconclusive,
unsatisfying finale.

Ripley's odyssey starts in New York City, when a wealthy
industrialist named Greenleaf mistakes him for "a Princeton man." He
offers the young man first-class tickets and money if he'll go to
Italy and convince his wastrel, playboy son, Dickie (Jude Law), a
"fellow Princeton graduate," to return home.

Ripley's true background is vague, but he's obviously poor and
without particularly impressive prospects. So the moment he begins
to taste la dolce vita with the wealthy Americans, he knows it's
time for a change.

Besides, he genuinely likes Dickie (Jude Law) and shares his
enthusiasm for the jazz of Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker, as
well as the sun-drenched days on his yacht and the charming presence
of the golden Marge (Gwyneth Paltrow).

Ripley isn't quite as enamored of their snotty, self-centered friend,
Freddie (Fairport's Philip Seymour Hoffman), especially after Freddie
takes Dickie's attention away from him. (Yes, the homosexual subtext
of the novel is more obvious in the film.)

Ripley decides he'd love to become Dickie, but, of course, that can't
happen until Dickie is no longer with us ... and Dickie's
disappearance leads to more death.

As he did in the Oscar-winning English Patient, Minghella takes his
sweet time detailing Ripley's talent for duplicity and the various
complications that arise.

But he and cinematographer John Seale keep our interest alive through
the sheer beauty of the images. The film presents the most
romanticized view of Italy -- the sips of coffee at sidewalk cafes,
Rome's sprawling Spanish steps, the gondoliers of Venice at sunset,
the gorgeous harbor of Mongibello.

Nighttime scenes at the opera and cafes add to the atmosphere, and
two highly musical, extended sequences in a jazz club contribute much-
needed energy.

The Talented Mr. Ripley also features talented young actors. As
Ripley, Damon shifts subtly from an innocent bumbler into an
increasingly conniving impostor. Law and Paltrow seem to the manor
born, and Paltrow moves beyond that to show Marge's pain and shock
when she realizes what Ripley has done.

In key supporting roles, Hoffman is wonderfully abrasive as the
obnoxious Freddie; Cate Blanchett suggests the curiosity and slight
desperation of a touring American kept just outside the inner circle;
and Jack Davenport is sympathetic as Peter, a musician-friend who
becomes a major factor in the film's final chapter.




Copyright 2000 Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.