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Ripley Review

Ripley is a 2024 neo-noir psychological thriller miniseries directed by Steven Zaillian and starring Andrew Scott in the main role. It’s one of the best shows of the year.

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“You’re a hard man to find“

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A grifter named Ripley living in New York during the 1960s is hired by a wealthy man to bring his vagabond son home from Italy in yet another adaptation of the original novel written by Patricia Highsmith. This is a much different take on this story than the famous 1999 movie that I personally really do not care for. But this series finally made me a fan of this material as it did wonders for not only the book, but also the cinematic medium as a whole.

Yes, Ripley was first and foremost obviously made with the intention to honor the classics of the Golden Age of Hollywood, especially Hitchcock and his masterful thrillers. I have always preferred black-and-white cinematography for the thriller and horror genres, so I found the decision to shoot it as such a brilliant one. And wow, does this show look incredible! I haven’t seen such gorgeous, crisp and artistic cinematography in quite a while. The camera work is exceptional and the series employed just the right amount of close-ups as well as long takes and wider shots. The shadow play is terrific too and so was the way they emphasized not just the more sinister plot developments through this medium, but also the otherworldly natural beauty of the Italian landscapes and cityscapes.

Yes, Ripley is worth seeing for the astonishing technical aspects alone. The production design is fantastic and how the show used its sets and locations was incredible as they mined them perfectly for never-ending suspense and the feelings of alienation and turmoil. The score is elegant and at times quite unnerving. The directing from Zaillian is top-notch and he seemed to be in full command of the material here. I also appreciated the evocative sound design, strong make-up and hairstyling choices, and deft editing. Some of the imagery here was instantly iconic, especially the boat sequence. The focus on art and architecture of the country also made it feel like a great ode to Italy and its culture.

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I have never bought Matt Damon in the role of Tom Ripley, but oh boy did Andrew Scott impress me here. This just might be his finest performance to date and a further proof that he is one of the best and most underappreciated actors working today. Scott’s Ripley is one that is charming for sure, but especially creepy, eerie and almost alien in his odd, calculated demeanor. Scott’s performance is layered and he embodied the character’s fears and paranoia so effortlessly while also effectively conveying his sexual frustrations. There is not a lot of gay elements in this story, but just enough to make it clear that it’s about that among many other things. This Tom Ripley is a mastermind manipulator and schemer and a villain for the ages.

I did not quite care for Johnny Flynn on this series and I still find Dickie to be the least interesting character in this story. Their scenes together were strong, but the character never quite clicked with me. Dakota Fanning was excellent and it’s great seeing her as an adult and on such a strong show. Her Marge could stand head to toe with Tom and those moments were so intense and wonderfully executed.

Another standout is Maurizio Lombardi as Inspector Ravini. I really enjoyed this character, though I did find his at times loose and at other times overly strict decisions troublesome. The back and forth between these two made the latter half of the show a lot of fun. The extensive use of Italian language not only fitted the setting, but it led to those extra flourishes where the newspaper headlines got translated into English in an elegant way.

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If there is one thing that I didn’t love about this show, it has to its pacing. It consists of eight one-hour episodes, leading to a pace that is quite slow at times. I was engaged throughout, but mostly because of its visuals and not its story. The first half is intense and energetic, but it is the second half that was a bit too deliberate in pace and too detailed in its scenarios. It’s clear to me that they wanted to stretch it out to the eight long episodes count, but it did come at the expense of immediacy and thrills. I still enjoyed those last couple of episodes, but they did feel a bit too unwieldy. It also failed to fully explore its themes of appearance versus reality and psychosexual dynamics.