The Talented Mr. Ripley

From the acclaimed director of The English Patient, Anthony Minghella's next movie is of Oscar caliber. This film is based upon the lesbian writer Patricia Highsmith's novel of a man devoid of love and afraid to love. I haven't read the book, so my opinions of the film should take this into account. Matt Damon is the perfect role for the scorned Tom Ripley. Creating a world where he's constantly living a lie, he manages to get himself into a situation of opportunity after wearing a friend's Princeton jacket. His mission is to visit Italy to persuade the son of the senior Mr. Greenleaf (James Rebhorn) to come home to New York. Captivated by the charm of Dickie (Jude Law), Tom longingly lusts after him to the point of wanting to be him. Marge (Gwyneth Paltrow), Dickie's fiancee, is too naive to notice anything until she finally realizes that her friend Tom isn't who he seems to be. Through all this confusion and betrayal, Tom befriends Meredith Logue (Cate Blanchett), who doesn't suspect anything at all. Minghella also wrote the screenplay and made Peter Smith-Kingsley (Jack Davenport), who was a minor character in the book, a love interest of Tom's. Intense drama, very complex characters, and great acting and direction make this a superb film overall. Just don't focus too much on the negative implications of the main character's behavior. Tom Ripley is a complicated character and it's too easy to generalize him. I really thought Matt Damon was effective in showing us how Tom can be so hated but sympathized at the same time.

-- David Hua

Source : Obtained from QCinema.com