Most movies wrapped around identity issues are great – think about The Fight Club, Black Swan and Dr. Zhivago for instance. These plots are deeply anchored by the concept of a main character navigating a sea of internal turmoil, trying to find their ways into the stormy sea of a world in constant change. Nevertheless, The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999) is a masterpiece on its own because is the only example which embodies both the protagonist and the antagonist in the same person and, to our awe and dismay, makes us cheer for him to have his own murderous ways out of the mess he himself created while denying his identity to embrace other’s. Rooting for a complex yet admitedly evil character, against our own moral values, accepting behavious we would never perform ourselves, is the definition of The Talented Mr. Ripley’s Syndrome.
“I’ve always thought it’s better to be a fake somebody than a real nobody” Tom Ripley
Based on the 1959 novel by Patricia Highsmith, the Anthony Minghella version is not the first cinematographic attempt to portrait this psychological thriller on screen. On the role that made his breakthrough outside France, Alain Delon played Tom Ripley on the 1960 Plein Soleil (Purple Noon), a movie which embodies perfectly the center theme of a troubled character dealing with the consequences of stolen identities but unfortunately sweeps under the rug two important concepts present both in the original novel and the Minghella: Ripley’s implied homosexuality (some scholars argue Tom is not gay per se, he is so very attached to the lifestlye it passes as obsession/sexual attraction to Dick Greenleaf) as well as the lack of punishment for his crimes, being able to evade both the Italian police and the private investigator Herbert Greenleaf hires to solve the mystery of his son’s disappearance.
Minghella was also very meticulous when pairing the soundtrack to the action, as the opnening scene itself presents all key elements of the plot about to develope, wrapped around the exquisite voice of Sinéad O’Connon (and Matt Damon’s narration):
Coming from unprivileged grounds, not being able to attend University, let alone an Ivy League institution, Tom Ripley is the embodiment of the working class struggle. A possible interpretation of the plot is the Marxist one, in which the real villain is the unfair class system, casting Ripley aside the shiny bubble of the golden heirs, these entitled American expats living a careless existence of leisure while staring at Tom with amusement and veiled contempt. Ripley is set to burst this buble when he is confronted by Dick who soon grows tired of his presence. It’s impossible not to feel sorry for Tom, being called a leech for not being able to afford a luxury lifestyle, when actually all presented characters are the real parasites. The only person who holds a job, besides Tom, is Marge, who was supposed to be writing a novel and is often seen among papers and a typer machine.
Dickie confronts an astonished Tom about his lack of boundaries.
As Tom Ripley moves along the higher circles of society, he grows considerably obsessed and becomes envious of his counterpart Dickie, copying his style and ultimately murdering him to assume his identity. The plot thickens as Tom has to manage to impresonate Dick while at the same time keeping a low profile as Tom, making others believe they are both alive, friendly seeing each other and maintaing the spheres of acquaintances separated.
As this is a psychological as well as a crime thriller, it’s a tense movie to watch and the moral grey zone of the protagonist’s schemings often had my jaw on the floor. In the end, however, I do count myself among the audience affected The Talented Mr Ripley’s Syndrome, feeling only releif when a man whose vicious retaliations were the motivation for two murders evaded Justice. It’s not a question of identity, it’s a question of why such a troubled character can inspire such compassion? My answer would be, Why Not?
fantasticomundodecarol 