The Talented Mr. Ripley is an excellent enrty from the late Oscar winning director Anthony Minghella. As the film opens and we meet Tom Ripley, he is playing piano at a Princeton function in a borrowed Princeton jacket. He is mistaken by a rich ship builder as a Princeton grad and friend of his son Dickie. The tycoon sends Tom to retrieve his aimless son, and it is almost immediately that he begins to assimilate himself into Dickie's life and ultimately transform himself into Dickie, by any means possible. Damon shines in the title role as the creepy, homosexual sociopath and Jude Law is great as Dickie. Other great actors make appearances as well such as Gwyneth Paltrow, Cate Blanchett, and Phillip Seymour Hoffman. The screenplay is nicely constructed and we are shown beautiful scenery of various locations in Italy. There are portions towards the end that meander, but all-in-all this is a wonderful film.
***1/2 out of ****
