Ripley's Game -- film review

Ripley's Game is a film version of the Patricia Highsmith novel dating back to 2002. Back in 2009, I listened to the audio book version of the novel, and was by no means convinced by the story. This may have been due in part to the cutting-down of the story to a fraction of the original length, but it put me off reading the novel itself, but that may have been a mistake. Because I must say that the film is very good.

I suppose if you wanted to find an actor to play someone with superficial charm but a very sinister side, John Malkovich would be high on your list. And if you wanted to cast a thuggish villain, you could do a lot worse than pick Ray Winstone. As for a charismatic, sensitive yet troubled British man, how about Dougray Scott? All three are splendid in their roles, and Lena Headey is excellent as Scott's wife.

Jonathan, played by Scott, embarrasses Ripley and himself at a social event. Ripley being Ripley, when his chum Reeves wants someone killed, he suggests Jonathan for the job. And, for complex reasons, the essentially decent Jonathan does commit the crime. A big mistake, of course, because he finds he is now in too deep. There need to be more people killed, some in a very gory manner. Jonathan is paid handsomely, but struggles to explain to his wife where the money came from.

Highsmith presents us with a disturbing moral universe - arguably, a universe without many morals. Her world is full of ambiguities, good and evil are often distorted. She's a strange but gifted writer, and one of her special talents is picking out appealing facets of people who commit terrible crimes. I thought this film translated her themes to the screen very well. Tom Ripley gets away with murder, and so (in a good way) does Highsmith.

Ripley's Game

As I listened to the third CD of the Ripley Mysteries – this time it was Ripley’s Game – I found myself admiring the intensity that Ian Hart brings to the role of Tom Ripley. I’m not familiar with Hart as an actor, but judging by these performances, he is truly a class act. He captures Tom’s ambiguous nature and handles the American accent (to my ear at least) flawlessly. It’s a very convincing portrayal.

I haven’t read the novel on which Ripley’s Game is based, and this may be a disadvantage. The story sees Tom becoming involved with an Englishman called Jonathan, who is induced by one of Tom’s dodgy chums, Reeves, to commit a murder. Soon a second commission is forthcoming, and Tom helps Jonathan out. Before long, the two men become quite attached to each other – with potentially disastrous results.

One of the off-putting features of Highsmith’s work to some readers is its heavy reliance on coincidence and on behaviour that seems irrational on the part of the leading characters. At her best, Highsmith(like the wonderful Ruth Rendell,whom she surely influenced) overcomes these difficulties triumphantly, and manages to say something of real interest about human relationships.

In this particular case, though, I wasn’t entirely convinced. Why would Tom pit himself not only against the forces of law and order, but also against the Mafia? He is impulsive and somewhat lacking in conscience, yes, but he isn’t stupid. I think I’ll have to read the novel to see if it seems more credible.

My own feeling is that Rendell is, overall, an even more successful and gifted writer than Highsmith. But that is to judge by the highest standard. Highsmith, for all her irritating quirks, is fascinating, and she played a crucial part in the development of the novel of psychological suspense.