Ripley's Game
February 7, 2003
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Plot
Tom Ripley persuades a man to commit a murder for a large sum of money. The situation goes out of control, and that man must escape trouble.
Release Year: 2002
Rating: 6.6/10 (10,055 voted)
Director:
Liliana Cavani
Stars: John Malkovich, Dougray Scott, Lena Headey
Storyline
Tom Ripley – cool, urbane, wealthy, and murderous – lives in a villa in the Veneto with Luisa, his harpsichord-playing girlfriend. A former business associate from Berlin's underworld pays a call asking Ripley's help in killing a rival. Ripley – ever a student of human nature – initiates a game to turn a mild and innocent local picture framer into a hit man. The artisan, Jonathan Trevanny, who's dying of cancer, has a wife, young son, and little to leave them. If Ripley draws Jonathan into the game, can Ripley maintain control? Does it stop at one killing? What if Ripley develops a conscience? Luisa prepares for her concert.
Writers: Charles McKeown, Liliana Cavani
Cast:
Ray Winstone
–
Reeves
John Malkovich
–
Tom Ripley
Uwe Mansshardt
–
Terry
Hanns Zischler
–
Art Dealer
Paolo Paoloni
–
Franco
Maurizio Lucà
–
Franco's Assistant
Dougray Scott
–
Jonathan Trevanny
Evelina Meghnagi
–
Maria
Chiara Caselli
–
Luisa Harari
Lena Headey
–
Sarah Trevanny
Sam Blitz
–
Matthew Trevanny
Emidio La Vella
–
Shoe Shop Owner
(as Emidio Lavella)
Lutz Winde
–
Ernst
Nikolaus Dutsch
–
Dr. Wentzel
(as Nikolaus Deutsch)
Wilfried Zander
–
Belinsky
Taglines:
The talented Mr Ripley is back. Older. Wiser. More dangerous
Details
Official Website:
Fine Line Features [United States] |
Release Date: 7 February 2003
Filming Locations: Aquarium, Tiergarten, Berlin, Germany
Box Office Details
Budget: $30,000,000
(estimated)
Opening Weekend: €210,408
(Italy)
(9 February 2003)
(113 Screens)
Gross: £917,414
(UK)
(6 July 2003)
Technical Specs
Runtime:
|
Argentina:
Did You Know?
Trivia:
John Malkovich remarked in an interview with the BBC that before starring in this film, he came close to directing
The Talented Mr. Ripley and that he was in negotiations to obtain the rights to direct a remake of the first "Talented Mr Ripley" adaptation,
Purple Noon.
Goofs:
Errors in geography:
When the train which Trevanny takes to Duesseldorf leaves Berlin, a historic building can be seen through the windows. This is the "Theater des Westens" which is located just north of the tracks and west to Zoo Station. So the train is traveling east while to reach its destination it would have to go in the opposite direction.
Quotes:
Reeves:
[tucking into eggs]
Mmmm, exquisito!
User Review
Never on the big screen, let it live long on DVD
Rating: 8/10
`Coming soon to a theatre near you'. It's a phrase we hear or read in
upwards of 7 times before each new movie we watch in the theatre. The
trailers that precede this announcement come with both anticipation and
expectation.
I remember sitting in a theatre, what seems like years ago now, and viewing
the trailer for Ripley's Game starring John Malkovich. I wondered if it was
a sequel to the Matt Damon vehicle, The Talented Mr. Ripley, and I raced
home to find that was exactly the case. Looking back, I cannot remember a
date being flashed across the screen as to when Ripley's Game would be
accessible, but usually it only takes a few months before our thirsts are
quenched.
Then came 2004, and my local DVD provider began to advertise Ripley's Game
as an upcoming release on disc. At first, I couldn't remember why the name
was so familiar, but after a quick internet check, I found that two years
later, Ripley's Game was being released without ever hitting a theatrical
venue in North America. Too bad.
Ripley's Game gives us an older Tom Ripley. Gone are the chiseled good
looks and innocent smile of Matt Damon and in are the glacial stares of the
stoic Malkovich. When we catch up to Tom he is still the con man brokering
an art forgery transaction that leaves one dead and Ripley unamused. We
quickly forward ahead three years to Italy where we find Ripley in his
favorable environment. Tom is living in a luxurious villa and has a woman
he completely adores.
Ripley's old life soon catches up with him and a former associate looks to
Tom for help with some Russian mafia types. Ripley suggests the use of an
‘innocent' for the job and gives him the name of a fellow countryman Tom has
a slight distaste. Soon the novice is coerced into contract killings
becomes part of Ripley's dastardly web of deception and murder, and the two
join forces to first complete a contract and then later to save each other's
lives.
It's great to have a film that picks up a fascinating character years after.
Wouldn't you like to see what Forrest Gump is up to in 2004? Or what about
Elliot from E.T. or Michael Douglas from Fatal Attraction? Without
parading sequels that try and catch a character one second from the time the
final frame of the original finished, wouldn't it be fresh to check in on
some of our faves? Well Ripley's Game does just that.
As Ripley, Malkovich gives us an incredibly restrained performance. He kept
me thinking that this is probably what Hannibal Lecter would be like if he
had a family or other interests. Whether he is talking to someone about the
restoration of a vintage piano or killing someone in a train's restroom, his
pulse never seems to race nor does he seem terribly concerned about the
chaos left in his wake.
Even when he surprises us by showing up to help the same man he pulled into
his world, we don't see it as guilt or an attempt to show dominance in the
world of criminal activity. Instead, Malkovich projects a man who is just
going about his business no matter what the reprehensible activity may
encompass.
Ripley's game is an exceptional film that unfortunately got ignored by the
Hollywood studio system. Maybe they were too busy with the Lord of the
Rings trilogies. But, if I were to add up all the movie tickets for movies
like Eurotrip, 50 First Dates and Starsky & Hutch, it even seems more of a
waste that I wasn't given the opportunity to get comfortable in the local
multi-plex for Ripley.
www.gregsrants.com