The film Text copyright (c) Filmverdict 2006-present. Any film titles and artwork used are copyright of their respective owners.
Between mounting his twin Oscar-courting epics, The English Patient and Cold Mountain (the former of which proved to be more adept at attracting statuettes), the late Anthony Minghella made The Talented Mr. Ripley, an ostensibly more low-key affair that is in fact his best film. A gripping, dark thriller, Ripley casts a exceptionally engrossing spell for its whole 139 minutes. Starring a pre-A-list Matt Damon as the titular Mr. (Tom) Ripley, it is a story about obsession, desire, deception and jealousy. Through an inadvertent mix-up at a posh party in 1950s New York, Ripley is recruited by rich tycoon Herbert Greenleaf to track down his son Dickie (Jude Law), who is travelling through Europe, and convince him to return home. Tom pretends to be a childhood friend of Dickie, and gladly takes the money to travel to Italy. When he gets there and finds Dickie with his girlfriend Marge (Gwyneth Paltrow), he likes what he sees: the pair live a life of luxury and leisure with no commitments and no money worries. After becoming close friends, Tom decides to go one step further, and begins to adopt Dickie's identity.
Minghella clearly poured much of his own personality into the film. The glorious Italian backdrop reflects Minghella's own roots in the country, while he transposes his love of jazz music onto Dickie's character. The film is constantly sumptuous to look at, with the various Italian locations (including Rome, Venice, and the Amalfi coast) giving it a uniquely flavoured atmosphere not present in any other Hollywood production. The closest correlative in American film would probably be the Sicily sequences in The Godfather films, sharing their sepia-toned hue and period setting, but Minghella's main source of inspiration is vintage Italian cinema. Minghella is again responsible for the screenplay, which provides another expert example of adapting dense novels to the screen; 139 minutes is lengthy for a thriller but none of them are wasted. The New York sequence that begins the film is a masterclass in cinematic storytelling, setting up character, plot and exposition effortlessly and in the most efficient way possible. The pacing throughout is never particularly fast, but it is perfectly judged: first it enchants, then it tightens its grip into some of the most suspenseful scenes that are likely to be found anywhere.
The cast was basically a who's who of young, up-and-coming talent in the late 90s. The only member of the ensemble whose track record was well established at the time was Paltrow; since her infamous Oscar-win theatrics and recent absence from cinema screens it's easy to forget just how skilled and likeable a presence she can be, and this may be her best performance. Leading man Matt Damon absolutely nails the tough central role, who basically becomes a thoroughly unpleasant person over the course of the narrative but due to Damon's sheer charisma the audience is with him, rooting for him to succeed, every step of the way. Jude Law also delivers some of his best work as the handsome, free-living playboy of whom Ripley is so envious. In smaller roles, Cate Blanchett is as outstanding as ever in what was one of her earliest film parts, while Philip Seymour Hoffman's Freddie, one of the few to be suspicious of Ripley at an early stage, leaves a major impression in just a scant few scenes.
Although very well regarded at the time and the recipient of 5 Academy nominations, The Talented Mr. Ripley is not as widely known as it deserves to be. Part of the reason may be that it was released in 1999, an Annus Mirabilis of American cinema in which an anomalous number of excellent, challenging films saw the light of day. Ripley is not only one of the best films from that remarkable year, it is one of the best films of the 1990s, and reaches back to the glory days of the 70s when prestigious, high-profile films did not all have to appeal to the lowest common denominator.
The extras
Much of what's here is the usual promotional guff; there's an insubstantial making-of, a brief look at the (superb) soundtrack, and a couple of music videos (i.e. film clip montages) of period songs performed by the actors in the film. Undoubtedly the standout is the top notch commentary by Minghella, which is engaging, informative and thorough.
The summary
A tour-de-force in every department: direction, writing, acting, cinematography, you name it. Complete class.
Agree? Disagree? Say so in the Guestbook!