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If anybody can create sympathy for the devil, the angelic Matt Damon can. As the title character of “The Talented Mr. Ripley,'' he plays an ingratiating sociopath who works his way through the American upper crust at play in Italy, leaving behind a bloody but elusive trail. The mystery is not who did it, but whether he will get caught. This thriller is so expertly -- and perversely -- poised that I found myself secretly rooting for the duplicitous Ripley. The talent is by no means limited to Mr. Ripley. Damon is matched in every slippery turn by a right-on-the-money cast that includes Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow, Cate Blanchett and Philip Seymour Hoffman. Director Anthony Minghella exposes the dirty little secret of American democracy: the impenetrable barrier the upper class erects around itself. So the question becomes, is it better to be a fake somebody than a real nobody? Minghella gives it so many seductive twists across the map of Italy that the upwardly mobile among us, if they're honest with themselves, will opt for the fake. Tom Ripley is poor and has no intention of staying that way. In Damon's uncanny, amazing performance, people think Ripley's “an exceptional young man,'' and there's no doubt of that. He is first seen accompanying a classical singer at the piano, but next he's brushing down gentlemen's clothes for tips. No one has to show him the money. He has an extraordinary nose for sniffing out the rich, even when they are trying to play down their status by traveling under their mother's name so no one will recognize them. The chameleon Ripley takes on the attributes, accents and expressions of the rich in an -- instant. He can do imitations of someone moments after meeting him -- or her. His own look is nondescript, a '50s version of a preoccupied nerd, dorky eyeglasses, downturned smile and all. If things go against him, he can turn on a dime. His other talents: forging signatures and telling bald- faced lies without batting an eyelash. He has a remarkable capacity to shrug off setbacks and just keep moving. A wealthy shipbuilder named Greenleaf puts down his guard and takes Ripley for someone he can trust. He dispatches Tom to Italy to persuade his ne'er-do-well son, Dickie, to come home. As the supercilious Dickie, the tawny Law catches exactly his character's curious balance of attraction and repulsion. The thoroughgoing expatriate at leisure, he indulges his love for boating and jazz at lively waterfront joints. Paltrow is Dickie's blue-blood girlfriend, Marge, coolly perceptive but not enough so to see that he's two-timing her. It takes her a while to catch on to Ripley, too. Hoffman plays the loathsome Freddie, a fellow expat. Someone describes him as ``the cream of America -- rich and thick.'' In Hoffman's performance, Freddie is so repellent that it wouldn't be surprising if some of his so-called friends would be happy to see him dead. Ripley must be a good chess player, too, because he sees many moves ahead and lets social butterfly Meredith Logue (Blanchett) mistake him for Dickie. The impersonation will come in useful later -- until it all backfires. I’ve watched the film more than 20 times and, each time, I am entertained all over again by the terrific performances, the wonderful scenery and the thrilling tale it tells. This is actually the third copy of the DVD I've bought after loaning one and losing another.Read full review
I hadn't watched this movie in years. I'd forgotten how good it was. Matt Damon is so creepy in this movie.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
It’s one of those movies where you will watch over and over.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
DVD and case like new condition. Movie played straight through without issue.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Great jib
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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