The Talented Mr. Ripley

Patricia Highsmith’s novel The Talented Mr. Ripley and Anthony Minghella’s 1999 screen adaptation of the same name delve into the life of a man with a talent for impersonation, fraud and his desire to obtain a lush lifestyle beyond his means. Sexuality and eroticism play a key role in the film adaptation. The precursor novel does not portray Tom Ripley as an overt homosexual, it displays the character as a sexually ambiguous individual. However, in the film it is evident that Ripley would rather sacrifice admitting his homosexuality in order to lead a luxurious but heterosexual existence. Highsmith never explicitly portrays Ripley’s sexuality as unambiguous, partially due to oppressive views of the society in which the novel exists. Michel…

What do you do when you love something so much you have to have it? When you envy someone so much you want to become it? These are the circumstances faced by Tom Ripley in writer-director Anthony Minghella's efficacious adaptation of the Patricia Highsmith’s thriller ‘The Talented Mr. Ripley’, writes Freddy Wilkinson Tom Ripley’s character is masterfully created. I would even go as far to say that it is not possible not to root for him in some sense. Not to like him at least not, on some level,…

it also present nearly 100 percent of “The Talented Mr. Ripley.” It is used throughout the book and movie many times as the setting for several events and as a symbol for a variety of ideas. Death, salvation, rebirth and deception by water in both the book and the movie adaptation of “The Talented Mr. Ripley.” Death is the first and perhaps most apparent of the three. Water is seen by many as a symbol of life and good health, but to Patricia Highsmith it is seen more as a symbol of the…

Patricia Highsmith’s novel “The Talented Mr. Ripley” presents to the reader a sexually complex character, Tom Ripley. Tom Ripley, who plays both the protagonist and antagonist in the novel, possesses the gift of imitation, forgery and impersonation. He uses these gifts to his advantage whenever possible throughout the novel. The other two main characters of this book are Marge and Richard “Dickie” Greenleaf. Sexuality is a sensitive topic for Mr. Ripley, even when he was a young child. He does…

Patricia Highsmith’s The Talented Mr. Ripley, Tom Ripley is the main character and this story revolves around his adventure. Analyzing the story, Ripley imitates somebody to change his own personality to avoid his shameful and unwanted past so that he does not return. This is an attempt to steal a new personality, where he is more successful and affluent, such as his friend Dickie Greenleaf. Ripley feels the need to mimic people because he has the need to escape from his actual life and identify…

They say money that does not keep a person warm at night. Though it can buy a feathered quilt. The Talented Mr. Ripley, an ironic detective novel by Patricia Highsmith is a prefect representation of a text which undermines the 1950’s way of life. The author subverts everything from sexuality to social class to the ignorance of the judiciary system, all while having the readers sympathize with a pathological murderer and even though religion may not be central theme the author writes with each of…

Highsmith depicts the behaviors of Tom in detail as well as reveals Tom’s inner thoughts explicitly, portraying the figure of Tom Ripley as a tactful while talented liar, who associates with the grey areas of the society and struggles to live a higher-level life, vain and calculating. For example, just after Tom accepts Mr. Greenleaf’s offer to go to Italy, he plans to cheat a last victim from his lists of prospects, Mr de Sevilla. “Shouldn’t he try just one more in these last ten days before he…

In Patricia Highsmith’s novel The Talented Mr. Ripley, Tom Ripley claims that “the main thing about impersonation, was to maintain the mood and temperament of the person one was impersonating, and to assume the facial expressions that went with them. The rest fell into place” (125). Although he makes impersonation sound easy, it takes more than impersonating for him to assume a new identity. In fact, Ripley’s attempt to become Dickie Greenleaf is not so successful. After killing his friend…

The successful novel by Patricia Highsmith – The Talented Mr. Ripley, follows the psychopath Tom Ripley’s journey as he changes his identity, and navigates his life through his own talent of lying. The adaptation of the novel to a film addresses some changes to meet the ‘requirement’ of the new form of entertainment in order to grab the spectator’s attention. This paper will compare the narrative configuration of the novel and the film, and will show how the differences between the two affect…

The play Macbeth and the movie The Talented Mr. Ripley are seemingly two completely different stories. One is in the 1600s with castles and witches, the other in the 1950’s, poodle skirts and all. But if you look closely enough, there are many similarities between the two. Macbeth and The Talented Mr. Ripley are based on the theme of deception, both plots are fiascos, and both main characters are overly ambitious. The film The Talented Mr. Ripley and the play Macbeth are both based on the…