The Talented Mr. Ripley | | Cast : | Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law | | Director : | Anthony Minghella | | Studio : | Paramount Studio | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen, Dolby | | Released Date : | December 25, 1999 | | DVD Released Date : | December 29, 2004 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), French (Dubbed), English (Subtitled), English (Original Language), French (Original Language) | | Audience Rating : | R (Restricted) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | April 08, 2005 | | Summary | I lost patience early on. | Content
 | Well before the end of the first hour, I found myself checking the clock and hoping this dull travesty of a story was almost over. The beginning was intrigueing, but it went downhill fast from there. I didn't care about any of the characters enough to give a damn what happened to any of them (with the exception of the final victim, who was the only likable character in the story - making me dislike this film all the more when he was killed). This is a story about empty shells - walking, talking personas with nothing inside. Oh, I have no doubt there are lots of real people like this. The characters are realistic, to be sure. But I don't want to spend 2 hours with them. In its defense, I will say that this film had some good lines of dialogue and great scenery, and the acting was good - but the characters and the story simply weren't engaging. |
| Rating | | | Date | April 06, 2005 | | Summary | A Sociopath's Career Begins... | Content
| Patricia Highsmith's first novel of the Tom Ripley series, (five novels in all) The Talented Mr. Ripley, created an anti-hero that no one had ever seen before. The novel and film presents the story through Ripley's eyes, and even though the man is capable of terrible acts, and commits these terrible crimes relentlessly to attain his own aims, we continue to maintain sympathy for the character; we want him to get away with it, and he usually does. Anyone who has read the novel will agree that Anthony Minghella's screenplay remained faithful to the original, veering off on only a few points, however managed to achieve the same tension, disturbance and suspense, also leaving the audience wondering, after Ripley's final hideous crime, what will this sociopath do next.
The film and novel introduces the beginnings of a sociopath's career. For all we know, killing Dickie Greenleaf (Jude Law) brutally in the boat was Ripley's first crime. In the film it is almost depicted as an accident, emotions out of control, perhaps self-defence, but Mr. Ripley never acts without a goal in mind, there's purpose in his actions. In this case, coming from a lowly status in society and finally tasting the good life, was something Tom Ripley discovered he couldn't do without, thus, similar to most sociopaths, will commit any act in order to achieve their particular ends, including murder.
One of the more enjoyable aspects of this film comes from Tom Ripley's efforts to become or assume the identity of the man he has murdered. The man's talent lies in his ability to impersonate just about anybody and an amazing skill to spin a tale on his feet - he's convincing liar. Identity is the central theme of this story, but also the way in which we can re-invent ourselves from being nothing to being someone. Even though Ripley has come from lowly beginnings, he is self educated, plays and appreciates opera and classical music and the finer things in life. He is a man of taste, but it is a learned taste, an acquired sensibility. In the film we see Ripley constantly reading Shakespeare, learning Italian, teaching himself about jazz, etc. He is continually improving himself, which of course is admirable, but at bottom, Ripley is just a thug. He's a paradox: we want to like the man, we want him to get away with everything he does, yet at the same time we are appalled at his methods. Patricia Highsmith's Tom Ripley was truly unique and Matt Damon wonderfully portrays the young version of this character in the film.
This is a beautifully shot film of southern and northern Italy accurately depicting the country in the late 1950's. Minghella ensured time and care was taken with every frame and this certainly shows throughout the picture. The soundtrack is also a work of art including wonderful classic pieces, opera and 50's jazz.
As an avid reader and re-reader of all the Ripley novels, this film only added to the story's appeal, and motivation to crack its covers once again.
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| Rating | | | Date | April 04, 2005 | | Summary | Pyschosis, Jazz, & the Italian Coast | Content
| Great movie! A thinking man's thriller, yes, featuring a talented cast and no clunky performances. Mid-century Italy is lensed so beautifully here you'll be calling a travel agent. Bikes on narrow streets. A flock of birds rising in a roomy town square. Heaped fruit. Boats leaning in the wind on the sun-kissed coast.
Matt Damon plays the lead character, Tom Ripley, a closeted gay man whose self-hatred has fueled a talent to mimic others, to become them even, to find the place where admiration crosses into imitation and then into immolation. In short he destroys those he draws creepily close to.
Jude Law's Dickie barely tolerates Ripley-the-tagalong after Dickie's worried dad sends Tom to retrieve him from the coast of Italy where he's living on his looks and charisma, enjoying jazz and sailing on the family dole. Tom quickly envies Dickie's life, which seems to pass with dreamlike ease and includes a blonde beautiful woman (Gwenyth Paltrow in a flawless performance). Dickie does tolerate Tom despite his seeming mundanity, however, because he senses a powerful and flattering obsession directed at him.
The movie, suffused in Italian sunlight, eventually reveals frightening darkness in the psyches of BOTH its male leads. If Tom is a Borderline Personality, then Dickie is at least Histrionic, incapable of maintaining interest in anyone or anything for very long; neither character, then, has a secure core identity. Sex and death are always interesting, so the erotic scene of Tom and Dickie playing chess with the latter nude in a bathtub and the violent scene of confrontation on a rowboat give two fine actors a chance to plumb intense emotions, which they do with great skill and sensitivity.
Damon's Ripley mimicks speaking voices, signatures, identities, and in one chilling scene the soft expressive singing voice of jazz great Chet Baker. By this sunny film's end, the darkness of a closing door incrementally fills the screen as we realize the full depths of the sociopathic nature of Tom Ripley, now on the run from the police.
Viewers will encounter great acting from the principals (Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Matt Damon, Jude Law, & Gwenyth Paltrow) and great direction from Anthony Minghella--who inserts a darkening character study and an effective thriller about shifting identities into a sunny sensual Mediterranean setting and a swirl of golden age jazz.
At once disconcerting and stylish, "Ripley" isn't just a good movie but a masterwork. |
| Rating | | | Date | March 23, 2005 | | Summary | A Darkly Disturbing Masterpiece | Content
| Sometimes you love a movie so much you almost can't put into words why. "The Talented Mr. Ripley" is one of those films, something haunting, something that stays with the viewer long after the final credits roll.
Matt Damon plays Tom Ripley, a penniless young New Yorker who lives in squalor and works as a men's room attendant; playing piano provides his only real joy. A gig as a substitute accompanist leads to an offer from shipping magnate Herbert Greenleaf (James Rebhorn): for the princely sum of $1000, Tom heads off to Italy to try to corral the millionaire's renegade son Dickie (Jude Law) and persuade him to return home.
Once in Italy, however, Tom immediately falls under the spell of Dickie's ex-pat life of luxury and indolent pleasure. Dickie has pretty much everything: looks, charm, money, nice clothes, gorgeous digs, a sailboat, pretty fiancee Marge Sherwood (Gwyneth Paltrow), and a gaggle of admiring friends. With a mix of guile and well-timed lies, Tom quickly ingratiates himself into the lives of Dickie and Marge, indulging in some light-hearted hedonism. But there's a current of darkness just beneath the sunny dolce vita, both in Tom's and Dicke's personalities. The tension between them escalates slowly but steadily, and the viewer knows that sooner or later, the powder keg is going to explode.
In the two "Bourne" films, Damon plays a professional killer who's stumbling back toward the light; in "Ripley," he plays a fairly ordinary guy (a "nobody," he calls himself) spiraling down into darkness: the journey, like a train wreck, is awful, but still somehow mesmerizing. Given Ripley's backstory, it's easy to empathize with him despite his immorality, and as with Jason Bourne, the viewer ends up rooting for a morally ambiguous character. Damon is simply aces here, bringing a lot of subtlety and depth to his insanely clever but deeply insecure character. Ripley's extreme neediness fairly leaps off the screen: even more than desiring wealth and luxury, he yearns to be loved, accepted, and well-regarded by others, but given his devious machinations, that's pretty much never going to happen.
Damon has to be at the top of his game, because Jude Law gives him a run for the money at every turn. If Dickie were merely a shallow cad, the movie wouldn't work half as well as it does: the character's appeal isn't that he's wealthy and gorgeous and sexy, it's that he's funny and charming and has a way of making everyone feel special. But he's mercurial and fickle--in one of the film's most revealing scenes, Marge cautions Tom, "The thing with Dickie--it's like the sun shines on you, and it's glorious. Then he forgets you, and it's suddenly very cold." Every character wants Dickie in some way, they all crave his attention, and even when he's not around, everyone talks about him. Like Damon, Law brings a lot of nuance to a character who isn't necessarily the nicest guy you'd ever meet, balancing a very fine line between desirable and despicable.
Paltrow is also terrific as the good-hearted Marge--the character lacks real complexity, but Paltrow nevertheless imbues her with a lot of warmth and sincerity. Over the course of the film, her sunny ebullience begins to dim as she slowly realizes the extent of Ripley's evil, and Paltrow conveys Marge's confusion and anger and fear in a way that's never anything less than convincing. Her wardrobe provides a wonderful indication of the character's mental state: as the light and joy are sucked out of Marge, she grows more groomed and coiffed and covered up, so that by her final scene, she's practically encased in armor, an apt emotional metaphor for the cold, empty shell she's become.
The supporting performances are likewise terrific. Philip Seymour Hoffman delivers a knockout turn as Dickie's odious friend Freddie Miles, the only character who sees right through Ripley immediately. Cate Blanchett is similarly strong as Meredith Logue, a well-meaning but vapid socialite who always seems to turn up at exactly the wrong moment--like Freddie, she constantly threatens to expose Ripley's duplicity. Blanchett's performance is remarkable given Meredith's almost complete lack of dimension. I particularly liked Jack Davenport's charming, humorous turn as Peter Smith-Kingsley, probably the most innocent of Ripley's victims.
In addition to a great story and stellar performances from its cast, Ripley boasts some of the nicest possible visuals. Italy in the 1950s provides a sumptuous backdrop for the unfolding drama, from the splendors of Venice and Rome to sun-drenched beaches and postcard-pretty fishing villages. Director Anthony Minghella employs some breathtaking imagery--the use of mirrors and reflections throughout the film is subtle and effective, and there's a shot of the Madonna rising from the sea that's used as masterful foreshadowing. Also top-rate is the music--not only Gabriel Yared's creepy score, but the music that the characters listen to and perform, which brings added dimension to their feelings and personalities.
Rarely do the elements of film-making come together as beautifully as they do in this movie: it's by turns romantic, dramatic, funny, and suspenseful; the acting is top-rate; the visuals and music all support and enhance the characters and story. While not gratuitously violent, it's not for the faint of heart, either: "Ripley" is dark and twisted and ambiguous, its conclusion deeply unsettling. This isn't a film for viewers who like happy endings and pat resolutions. But if you're looking for a film with real substance and no easy answers, I recommend "Ripley" without reservation.
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| Rating | | | Date | March 14, 2005 | | Summary | Bad Things Happen in Italy | Content
| Three and a half, if only I could give that.
Matt Damon is positively sinister; psychologically conflicted and troubled, yes, but also sinister. Jude Law is cavalier, mocking, and spoiled (he's a little too good at this kind of role). Smaller, supporting roles here create the backdrop for the story and how things unravel for Damon's Tom Ripley. Cate Blanchett plays the small role of Meredith, to whom Ripley has passed himself off as Law's Dickie Greenleaf. Philip Seymour Hoffman is excellent as the sarcastic, suspicious and smarmy Freddy who does not quite trust Ripley, as he insinuates himself into Greenleaf's comfortable lifestyle. Greenleaf is so deeply ingrained in his own hedonistic lifestyle and lack of concern for others that he uses Ripley and does not think to see Ripley as a predator using him. Nor does Greenleaf's needy, simpering fiancée Marge (Gwyneth Paltrow) see Ripley as predatory at first.
The film is tastefully done, full of suspense and psychological tautness. Anthony Minghella delivers another excellent story coupled with amazing cinematography (almost distracting from the story it is so beautiful).
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