The Talented Mr. Ripley

Rating:
Summary: Superb noir portrayal of an immoral, brilliant man
Review: Patricia Highsmith (who died in 1995) wrote many novels of psychological suspense and high literary quality, but she is only starting to achieve the acclaim she richly deserves. The 1999 movie version of "The Talented Mr. Ripley" helped restore her most famous novel to the spotlight, despite the uneven quality of the film itself. This 1955 book remains Highsmith's most stunning work, and it ranks high among classic noir literature and psychological studies.

Like some other noir classics (such as Jim Thompson's "The Killer inside Me" and Ira Levin's "A Kiss before Dying"), "The Talented Mr. Ripley" is written from the point-of-view of an amoral character who finds that murder is merely another tool to achieve his ends. Highsmith crafts one of the most convincing and sympathetic psychotics ever written in the character of young Tom Ripley. Ripley is a low-level con-man with anti-social tendencies and a lust for living the good life that he's been denied. When the rich father of Dickie Greenleaf, an old acquaintance of Tom's, asks Tom if he'll travel to Italy to convince his wayward son to come back to the U.S., he takes the job. In the sunny romance of Italy, Tom finds himself becoming friends with Dickie. But the friendship changes to envy -- Tom Ripley will do anything if he can just HAVE Dickie Greenleaf's lifetstyle...or even better, BECOME Dickie Greenleaf. Tom gets himself enmeshed in an increasing web of murder and fear, always trying to stay one step ahead of a scheme that seems to be constantly collapsing behind him.

What is so amazing about Highsmith's achievement in this novel is that she makes the reader root for Tom Ripley, despite his superficialty and complete lack of scruples. Tom's goals (but not methods) are ones most readers can understand: easy luxury, affluences, respect, nights in European clubs, days relaxing in cafés. And when his plans start to fall apart and threaten to consume him, the reader wants him to succeed because he has such ambitions, and the fear he feels of getting caught is heartbreakingly real. Watching Tom cleverly connive his way out of one difficultly after another keeps the reader turning the pages, and Highsmith's superb literary style paints a detailed portrait of Southern Europe more appealing than any travelogue.

If you've seen the film, understand that you're only getting the surface of Tom Ripley. The book has the luxury of diving right into his mind -- and it's an unsettling and fascinating place to be. You won't forget the time you'll spend with "The Talented Mr. Ripley."

Rating:
Summary: Great Character
Review: Tom Ripley is one of those characters that leaves you wondering. Should I admire this guy? Is he a total schmuck? Should I pity him? How can he live in his own skin? These characteristics and contradictions within one character testify to the depth and talent of Highsmith's writing. The other characters are less well developed - a bit two dimensional. But Ripley's character is enough to keep the book interesting.

The plot line comes and goes. There were some points where I got bored and tired of the self-pitying characters. But this is who they were and this is how we should see them.

Another nice plus is that the book is not set in any particular time. It was first published in the mid 1950s, but it has a feel of the 1960s "beautiful people" or of the 1920s. This lends a feeling of mystery to the writing.

Rating:
Summary: The Ultimate Empathic Antihero!
Review: The character development of Tom Ripley is what makes The Talented Mr. Ripley one of the great crime novels of the 20th century. Ms. Highsmith is an acute observer and is able to translate her sensitivity into a multidimensional portrait of a successful criminal in a way that is virtually unmatched. One of the most astonishing qualities of this book is that you will find yourself pulling for Ripley, even though he is as amoral a character as you will read about.

We meet Tom Ripley almost as casually as new friends do. It's only by following him around, hearing his thoughts and observing what he does that we realize who he is. Ripley is an immensely capable man who floats like a newly cut wood chip on the surging tides of life, always buoyant regardless of the circumstances. He is extremely impulsive. If there's candy there, he cannot resist it. At the same time, he has so little invested in who he is that he can even be happier pretending to be someone else. He's a man without a core. He is also unattached to the world's judgments. He looks for neither approval nor acclaim. Solitude suits him well.

The story opens as the father of a casual acquaintance tracks Ripley down in a bar. The father wants to persuade his son to return from Italy to take up a career in the family business. Through this contact, Ripley finds himself sent off to Europe as a paid-for emissary with an expense account. Once there, Ripley makes no headway but does develop a friendship with his casual acquaintance before strains start to develop. What follows is one of the most interesting and intricate plot lines that it will ever be your pleasure to read.

The book's largest theme is about identity. Who are we really? Can we be someone different from whom we seem to be? How do we misjudge one another? I don't remember any other crime novel that explores such subtle questions so well.

I recently reread this novel for the third time. I found depths in the themes and story telling that I had missed before. Even if you have read it before, I suggest you do so again. If you haven't read any of the Ripley novels, you have a great treat ahead of you. The next book in the series is Ripley under Ground.

Enjoy a great read!


Rating:
Summary: The Talented Mr. Ripley
Review: I thought this book was really good. It was a pretty quick read and flowed very nicely. This book really kept my attention and I always wanted to know if Tom Ripley was ever going to get caught.

I'm looking foward to seeing the movie version.


Rating:
Summary: Amazing
Review: Ever since seeing the movie version several years ago, I have always wanted to read the novel. I am someone who believes that the book is always better than the movie. And the same is true with "The Talented Mr. Ripley." I truly think that Anthony Mingella's film was well-made, but there are so many nuances to Tom Ripley's character that could never receive justice on film.

Highsmith tells the story of the utterly forgettable Thomas Ripley, a young man who yearns for wealth and prestige to the extent that he schemes his way through life. A golden opportunity comes along when he is tracked down by the father of Richard "Dickie" Greenleaf. Dickie's father pays Tom to travel to Italy to force his wayward son to come home. Tom sets out to fulfill this plan, but on meeting Dickie, he becomes too enthralled with his lifestyle, that he helps Dickie elude his father even more. Tom is happy in paradise, or so it would see. He loves Dickie's life so much (and perhaps Dickie himself) that he would do anything to have his lifestyle - including murder.

"The Talented Mr. Ripley" is a detailed character study of an unlikeable character. Readers are meant to dislike Tom for all the reasons that other characters do, as does Tom himself. Yet at the same time, Tom grows on the reader because we want to know what happens to him. Even as he winds himself further and further into trouble, we want to know how he'll be able to get out of it. Tom himself finds his situation unbelievable; rarely admitting to himself that the bad deeds he has done are real. He keeps waiting for his luck to run out. So do we.