The Talented Mr. Ripley

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Grade: A
Review Posted: December 19, 1999
Reviewed by Jonathan Lewis.


The Talented Mr. Ripley is director Anthony Minghella’s dazzling
adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s 1952 novel about a smiling
psychopath. Through a case of mistaken identity, Tom Ripley (Matt
Damon) has been hired by industrial Herbert Greenfield (James
Rebhorn) to travel to Italy and convince his spendthrift, wastrel
son Dickie (Jude Law) to return home. Traveling first class, Ripley
decides he likes living the life of luxury not available to him as
a washroom attendant with no college education. However, Ripley is
not without his own smarts. Upon meeting Dickie and his fiancee
Marge Sherwood (Gwyneth Paltrow), he gradually sets out to assume
the identity of his quarry, displaying a talent for mimicry,
forgery and quick thinking.

Initially, Ripley is attracted by the lifestyle, but it soon becomes
the man himself who proves to be the primary attraction for him.
Highsmith’s novel certainly contains all the pot-boiler elements of
a lurid thriller, but it is an intense and disturbing character study
at its core. Ripley is conflicted about his sexual yearnings, yet not
able to express them honestly in the rarified social and moral
climate of the mid-1950s. That which he leaves unspoken develops into
an obsession, fueled by Dickie’s attentiveness, a misplaced hand on
the shoulder, and a spontaneous kiss between them.

Deception and jazz music are predominant themes in the film. Upon
arriving in Europe, Ripley meets an American socialite (Cate
Blanchett) traveling incognito and he responds with a little lie that
leads to an ever-widening circle of fraud, masquerades, jealousy and
betrayals. As he gets himself in deeper, he must maneuver quickly and
learn to improvise, much like the jazz musicians he listens to. The
added lustre of gorgeous expatriates cavorting on the Italian Rivera
contributes to the film’s heady and sensual allure.

Damon is not the standard issue Hollywood pretty boy; there has always
been a working class toughness about him, which makes him absolutely
right for this role. His boyish smile hides something sinister
underneath, as he insinuates himself into the very fabric of Dickie’s
life. Jude Law is a magnetic presence and the perfect embodiment of
class, beauty, brains, and arrogance. It's not hard to see how
Damon’s character, or anyone else for that matter, could fall head
over heels for him. Paltrow’s doesn’t have much to do in the first
half, but she gets a few great scenes of confrontation as she grows
increasingly suspicious of Ripley. Blanchett and Philip Seymour
Hoffman as Dickie’s bitchy society pal Freddie are fine, though
underutilized in small roles.

Lest someone complains that this is another of Hollywood’s unpleasant
depictions of an unsympathetic gay character, this is not a story
solely about repressed sexuality. The film explores issues of social
status, wealth and class snobbery, all the while Minghella keeps it
entertaining with an ever-tightening of the screws. Great
performances, pretty locales, and smart plot twists makes this
exciting character study almost as cunning as the titled character
himself.