Ripley is a dark phycological thriller which follows the titular Tom Ripley on a journey to Italy to convince a rich man to return home. A web of obsession, fraud and murder soon follows. This new adaptation of Patricia Highsmith's fantastic novel, The Talented Mr. Ripley, is so good that I genuinely don't know whether I prefer it or not to the 1999 film - one of my favourite films. Ripley approaches the source material in a completely different but equally valid way.
This is probably the most book-accurate adaptation, but Steven Zaillian has still put his own great spin on it. The whole film is in black and white. This gives the film a complimentary noir tone and makes several scenes extremely tense or unnerving. And yet, it also compliments the beauty of certain scenes, especially the architecture of places like Atrani and Rome. The cinematography is fantastic. Special mention has to go to the boat scene: the multiple underwater shots make it so foreboding. The show is a very slow burn, but never gets boring due to the ever-present tension.
The actors are all fantastic. I've always been a fan of Andrew Scott, but wow! He's so unnerving and yet so likeable as Ripley. I love how, whenever he's interrogated, he's seems so calm and collected, but you can tell from brief pauses and eye movements that his mind is moving at 100 mph. The whole cast is great at this in general, with little looks that tell you so much about what they're thinking, even if they're not saying it. His Ripley is more menacing than Damon's, though still sympathetic, and I love each take equally. Dakota Fanning is amazing as Marge, easily showing seething hatred for Ripley with nothing more than a false smile. Maurizio Lombardi is brilliant as Inspector Ravini, and Eliot Sumner's unique take on Freddy is also great. Johnny Flynn is great as Dickie Greenleaf, though the series does spend slightly less time exploring the bond between Ripley and Dickie before it starts to strain. I think the show spends a decent enough time on that period of the story, but a few more scenes would have been appreciated.
Overall, the shows' portrayal of the story is fantastic. I love the added focus on Ripley's life in America (contextualising his later actions). I love some of the scenes from the book that were included (which had yet to appear in adaptations), such as Dickie's homophobia to the men on the beach and the parties Ripley goes to in Venice. I also love the things added to the story, such as the expanded role of Ripley's landlady, and the Adaptational Early Appearance of Reeves.
I definitely recommend Ripley. If you've never seen/read this story before, this is a great way to first experience it. If you're a fan of the books or previous adaptations, you should still enjoy this series' unique yet faithful take (I certainly did, and I've seen both films and read the book).
Series The Great Pretender
Ripley is a dark phycological thriller which follows the titular Tom Ripley on a journey to Italy to convince a rich man to return home. A web of obsession, fraud and murder soon follows. This new adaptation of Patricia Highsmith's fantastic novel, The Talented Mr. Ripley, is so good that I genuinely don't know whether I prefer it or not to the 1999 film - one of my favourite films. Ripley approaches the source material in a completely different but equally valid way.
This is probably the most book-accurate adaptation, but Steven Zaillian has still put his own great spin on it. The whole film is in black and white. This gives the film a complimentary noir tone and makes several scenes extremely tense or unnerving. And yet, it also compliments the beauty of certain scenes, especially the architecture of places like Atrani and Rome. The cinematography is fantastic. Special mention has to go to the boat scene: the multiple underwater shots make it so foreboding. The show is a very slow burn, but never gets boring due to the ever-present tension.
The actors are all fantastic. I've always been a fan of Andrew Scott, but wow! He's so unnerving and yet so likeable as Ripley. I love how, whenever he's interrogated, he's seems so calm and collected, but you can tell from brief pauses and eye movements that his mind is moving at 100 mph. The whole cast is great at this in general, with little looks that tell you so much about what they're thinking, even if they're not saying it. His Ripley is more menacing than Damon's, though still sympathetic, and I love each take equally. Dakota Fanning is amazing as Marge, easily showing seething hatred for Ripley with nothing more than a false smile. Maurizio Lombardi is brilliant as Inspector Ravini, and Eliot Sumner's unique take on Freddy is also great. Johnny Flynn is great as Dickie Greenleaf, though the series does spend slightly less time exploring the bond between Ripley and Dickie before it starts to strain. I think the show spends a decent enough time on that period of the story, but a few more scenes would have been appreciated.
Overall, the shows' portrayal of the story is fantastic. I love the added focus on Ripley's life in America (contextualising his later actions). I love some of the scenes from the book that were included (which had yet to appear in adaptations), such as Dickie's homophobia to the men on the beach and the parties Ripley goes to in Venice. I also love the things added to the story, such as the expanded role of Ripley's landlady, and the Adaptational Early Appearance of Reeves.
I definitely recommend Ripley. If you've never seen/read this story before, this is a great way to first experience it. If you're a fan of the books or previous adaptations, you should still enjoy this series' unique yet faithful take (I certainly did, and I've seen both films and read the book).