“
It is dangerous to reinvent a beloved work. How to do better than Alain Delon or Matt Damon? But this rereading won me over with its dark aspect which sticks to the character of Patricia Highsmith
,” admits actor Johnny Flynn. The Briton is at the helm with the charismatic Andrew Scott (
Without Ever Knowing Us, Fleabag
) as the intriguing
Ripley
. New exploration for Netflix of the descent into hell of the American novelist's antihero.
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A small New York crook who falsifies invoices, Tom Ripley is tasked by a rich industrialist with bringing back his son who is tasting the charms of the Italian dolce vita. The heir who paints as an enlightened amateur and sunbathes on the beaches with his journalist companion Marge Sherwood (Dakota Fanning) has no desire to cross the Atlantic again. But moved to find a compatriot, Dickie Greenleaf welcomes Ripley with open arms upon his arrival on the Amalfi Coast. He shares his bohemian life with her. Between attraction and revulsion, Ripley interferes in Greenleaf's privacy.
On this well-known score which leads to murder, creator Steven Zaillian (screenwriter of
Schindler's List
and
The Irishman
) manages to surprise with this twilight and fatalistic variation which is bathed in the coldest black and white, between Hitchcock and Fellini. A bias inspired by the cover of a first edition of the novel. His series takes the opposite view from the summer torpor that rocked the adaptations of René Clément and Anthony Minghella. The result is the impression of a threatening autumn sky echoed by the deserted streets, the long silences filled with unease which hover between Tom and his interlocutors.
An oppressive run
Andrew Scott takes on the role of the scammer. Not attractive or dandy, his Ripley is a marginal in perpetual escape and avoidance. Moving from one – often lame – scheme to another. The seed of paranoia that lies dormant within him is just waiting to germinate. Before even leaving the Big Apple, he looks over his shoulder in fear of being overtaken by its ghosts. In the role of the sacrificial lamb, Johnny Flynn (
Emma
) provides a glimpse of an innocent Dickie, who places his trust in a stranger in whom he recognizes his desire for independence.
“Dickie and Marge see themselves as artists in exile fleeing their privileged environment in the manner of Gertrude Stein and Ernest Hemingway who had established themselves in Paris. But they hide their faces: their comfort is based on these social origins that they reject
,” notes Johnny Flynn, overwhelmed by the tragic nature of his character.
“By wanting to introduce Ripley to her life as an artist, to her values, Dickie gives her the keys to usurping her identity. His death becomes inevitable. He behaves like Christ in the days preceding the crucifixion. »
Dickie's death occurs quickly on screen. A way for Steven Zaillian to distinguish himself from his predecessors who made it the pinnacle of their feature film. He draws on all the rough edges scattered throughout the five novels devoted to the sociopathic scammer. Including the queer dimension.
“Despite his crimes, the viewer cannot help but appreciate Ripley and wish that he escapes justice, that is the genius of Patricia Highsmith’s venomous pen
,” greets Johnny Flynn. Between beautiful hotels and slums, the series weaves the oppressive journey of a man who hates himself, caught in his own traps and lies.