Killer
Queer. The plot follows the antics of an American
fellow from the wrong side of the tracks with
a knack for impersonation called Ripley (Matt
Damon). This unassuming chap is mistaken by
a rather dry father for an ex-Princeton schoolmate
of his absent son who was now playing the playboy
out in Italy. The lad encourages the hapless
father's error and is rewarded when said father
offers Ripley a thousand dollars (a lot of pocket
money in the fifties) to coax his son back to
the States. Ripley is off to Italy like a shot.
And Italy is shot in beautiful cinematic colours
and compositions galore, looking utterly gorgeous.
The Italian Tourist Trade must be rubbing their
hands in glee. To the Italians this film must
be worth a thousand gushing Holiday Shows
shown end to end. (What an effective torture
that would make: " No - not another Holiday
Show! the rack! the thumbscrew! the iron maiden!
software testing! anything but that! Aaaagh!
OK, OK I'll tell you everything!")
The son (who is brilliantly portrayed by Jude
Law) soon reveals his impeccable good taste
by stating unequivocally that he will not relinquish
Italy (complete with Gwynneth Paltrow as girlfriend)
for the States. But the beauty of Italy is soon
put into perspective by the mischief of Ripley,
who turns out to be a dangerously insane, pathologically
lying homosexual. That in itself wouldn't have
been so disconcerting if Ripley hadn't grown
obsessed with the errant son and his enviable
lifestyle.
If you fancy a thoughtful film see "The
Insider" then "American Beauty",
both of which are heartily recommended by yours
truly. Then perhaps consider this, as its not
a bad film. It is actually quite an enjoyable
diversion.
The main question about The Talented Mr.
Ripley is: whither was the sense of anxiety
and intensity, the emotion and danger? The plot
was about as digestible as a bathtub of vindaloo
but at least it had the potential for suspense.
Yet the suspense was squandered. The film was
a bit like a learner driver failing a driving
test on hesitancy: it steered clear of excitement;
it lacked conviction and it needed to take a
few more risks: risks such as rubber burning,
breakneck car chases through crowded streets,
blasting through piles of cardboard boxes and
knocking over fruit-laden market stands with
pedestrians diving out of the way in the nick
of time whilst admiring tyre-screeching handbrake
turns and improbable jumps courtesy of conveniently
placed ramps would have been nice. But that
might be stretching a metaphor a tad too far.
Minor Spoiler ahead: The film seemed
to philosophise on evil but unfortunately Ripley
came across as exorbitantly screwed up, provoked,
foolish and bumbling rather than evil per se.
Perhaps his role was softened for the perceived
sake of cinema audiences. Thus are great films
sabotaged. This could explain why the ending
didn't seem to gel with the spirit of the rest
of the flick and why the whole thing doesn't
quite work. A related woe: miscasting Damon
as the titular lead didn't do the film any favours.
It could have been so much better if Ripley
had been impersonated by The Talented Mr. Law.
The
same ending with Law playing a cold-blooded
and menacing Ripley might have worked
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 | | | | | | From: |
Nicky | Subject: | 2001-09-07 03:30:17 |
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rethink the film Jimbo | Subject: | 2004-06-11 17:39:20 |
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