The Talented Mr. Ripley

The film feels warm but unsettled, as if hinting at approaching storms; the score, too, flits from lugubrious to manic.

The menace builds as Tom’s deceptions pile up and the locations — Rome, Venice, cliffside Positano — are as gorgeous as the cast.

A decidedly dark and demented sort of polished gem, all spectacular surfaces masking a fundamentally rotten core.

The sumptuous production, eclectic score, grand performances and engrossing moments of suspense make Ripley one the year's finer offerings.

Minghella puts us inside Ripley's head, inviting us to share his envy and giddy excitement even as we recognize his warped need to be someone he's not.

"The Talented Mr. Ripley" slithers along with great elegance and purpose for most of Ripley's reign, stumbling only at the end when Minghella trips on the limitations imposed by his own updated psychoanalysis.

The dark decandence on display is second to none.

If it wasn’t clear by now, The Talented Mr. Ripley is the rare film of its era in which the actors take center stage, not the director.

Matt Damon’s Tom Ripley is a 20th century Iago: he lies for advancement, he lies to protect himself, and he lies because it does not occur to him to simply tell the truth.

A sumptuous thriller directed to near perfection by the late Anthony Minghella.