Netflix Review: ‘Ripley’ is an Elegant and Captivating Slow Burn Thrill Ride

It’s been more than half a century since the publication of Patricia Highsmith’s The Talented Mr. Ripley. First adapted into the Alain Delon starrer Purple Noon just five years later, its more well-known cinematic version featured Matt Damon and an Oscar-nominated Jude Law in Anthony Minghella’s 1999 production. While a quarter of a century has passed since then, Netflix’s take on the same source material feels just as marvelously dated and sedated, welcoming audiences into a dark tale of friendship and jealousy transformed into something far more sinister.

Tom Ripley (Andrew Scott) is working cons in New York City in the 1960s, staring at checks mailed to medical offices while telling concerned patients over the phone that their money was never received and is now owed plus a collection fee. His attempt to cash some of his illicit earnings nearly leads to the discovery of his scheme, but it comes just as he receives a potentially much more rewarding offer. The father of an old acquaintance of his, Dickie Greenleaf (Johnny Flynn), enlists him to travel to Italy to track down his son and convince him to return home, sending Ripley abroad and in search of a new life he can call his own.

Knowing the trajectory of this story doesn’t take away from the intrigue and suspense to be found in this eight-episode limited series. It moves at a deliberate, unhurried pace, following Ripley as he stalks around his home city, feigning politeness and a goodhearted nature while taking advantage of hard-working people who are easily frightened and fooled by his deceptions. When he first encounters Greenleaf, the way in which he approaches him and suggests a level of friendship that clearly didn’t previously exist indicates just how frequently he worms his way into other people’s lives for his own benefit.

Playing the chameleon-like Ripley is a dramatic about-face from Scott’s most recent role in All of Us Strangers. There’s a similar loneliness to both men, barely seen by those around them and connected to a reality that isn’t tangible, but Ripley is so easily able to put on a mask to hide who he really is that it feels like he may not truly even know. The series’ second episode features a haunting scene in which Ripley puts on Greenleaf’s clothes and practices speaking like him, truly showcasing his ability to adopt a new persona that appeals to him more than just being Tom Ripley, a formidable showcase for Scott’s acting abilities.

Opposite Scott, Flynn, whose work in Beast might have made him a more expected fit for the role of Ripley, is purposely charming and laidback, not nearly suspicious enough of his new best friend as he should be. Complicating their friendship is the presence of Greenleaf’s girlfriend Marge Sherwood (Dakota Fanning), who doesn’t trust Ripley at first but soon comes to appreciate and like him. Fanning, whose career got off to a fantastic start at a young age but hasn’t had a standout role in years, is a superb choice to play Sherwood, imbuing her with a fiery energy that captures the rightful concern she has about this mysterious new man with a yearning curiosity to understand and get to know him.

The black-and-white period look of this show really sells it, and it’s all in the capable hands of writer, director, and creator Steven Zaillian. The Oscar-winning scribe of Schindler’s List and frequent collaborator of Martin Scorsese’s has worked extensively with period pieces and previously steered the ship for the limited series The Night Of. This story has been brought to the screen before, but this iteration feels fresh and alluring, just charming and unnerving enough to demand attention and leave a lasting impression.

Series Rating: 8/10

Awards Buzz: Despite being infamously snubbed for Fleabag, Scott is a past Emmy nominee for his 2019 guest spot on Black Mirror. Expect him to be in the awards conversation, with possibilities for Flynn and Fanning too as well as the series as a whole.