Ripley
It is not the riveting Andrew Scott who plays the lead in this latest adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s ‘The talented Mr Ripley’. Neither is it the smoldering Dakota Fanning playing Marge Sherwood the love interest of Dickie Greenleaf played with amusing disinterest by Johnny Flynn, the absent heir to his fathers shipping business. Who are the stars of this engrossing thriller
A mid level New York huckster, Ripley seizes the offer by his father to to go to Italy and bring back his wayward trust fueled son to the fold. The assignment many levels above what he is used to he soon adapts to the idle luxurious lifestyle. All the while hatching a scheme where he can make this new world his.
No. The stars are the endlessly mesmerizing editing and design of almost every scene. Set in the early nineteen sixties, shot mostly in Italy Director Steven Zaillian and cinematographer Robert Elswit have raised the gorgeous black and white ethos to or even beyond that of the master Italian directors of that era.
The plot intricate and gripping, the acting, especially by the chameleon like hypnotic Scott keep your eyes looking in one direction. It’s rare that a streaming production attains this level of artistry, but this one has.
