If you have ever told a lie and then felt forced to tell another to avoid being found out, then in a small way, you have met Tom Ripley. If the lies have become you, then you are Tom Ripley.
It has been said that, “The most mischievous liars are those who keep sliding on the verge of truth,” and Tom Ripley (Matt Damon) knows this well. He tells a lie whenever it’s convenient, but he always makes sure solid, credible facts – and lots of them – surround the untruth. That’s how Tom, who considers his ‘real’ self to be a nobody, ends up in late 1950s Italy, cavorting on the beach with wealthy Dickie Greenleaf (Jude Law) and Marge Sherwood (Gwyneth Paltrow). Ripley, who, with a simple little lie, has convinced Dickie’s father that the two were university chums, is sent to Europe to convince Dickie to return home to a respectable life. And Tom is milking the all-expenses-paid trip for everything he can get.
Tom seems like the most decent fellow you could meet – far more decent than the rakish Dickie. He works hard to research the interests of those he’s spending time with, thereby allowing himself to fit in smoothly. If Dickie likes jazz, then Tom will learn all about jazz. If he lacks a suntan, he’ll get one. In Tom’s day-to-day life, his reality is that of those around him. He has no real identity other than the one he’s playing at the time.
Is Tom in love with Marge, Dickie or just himself? Will he stop at nothing to protect his privileged position as an upper class poser? Every web of lies eventually starts to break down, and thus Tom’s idyllic life with the impetuous Dickie becomes threatened. To protect his position, Tom does what he must, taking advantage of his passing resemblance to his friend.
This is a dark and disturbing film, belying its beautiful, sunny Italian locations and the favourable first impression Mr. Ripley gives everyone. The Talented Mr. Ripley is intelligent, fascinating and troubling. We find ourselves at turns seduced by Tom’s low-key charisma and horrified by what he is doing. Matt Damon gives a very strong performance as Tom, making this chameleon seem real – a highly controlled psychopath, whose behaviour only occasionally teeters on the brink of exposing himself. Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Cate Blanchett, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and especially Jack Davenport capably play the supporting array of dupes.
Although the script, adapted by director Anthony Minghella from the Patricia Highsmith novel, sometimes teeters on the brink of believability, the strong acting and Minghella’s di
