Andrew Scott Shows Incredible Range in Ripley, But Was It Worth A Remake?
Andrew Scott flexes his range with the dark lead character of Tom Ripley in Netflix’s limited series Ripley, but did this story warrant a remake?
Ripley follows the dark antics of the poor but cunning Tom Ripley. Tasked with a trip to Italy and a goal of bringing an estranged acquaintance, Richard Greenleaf (Johnny Flynn), back home to New York, Tom falls in love with the leisurely trust fund lifestyle. When things take a sinister turn, Dickie’s devoted girlfriend Marge (Dakota Fanning) grows suspicious of Tom as he evades accusations he is all too guilty of.
In opposition to the 1999 film adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s book, Ripley fully leans into the dark thriller tone from the onset and doesn’t let up. Black and white visuals aren’t for everyone, but in Ripley it symbolizes the grayscale world in which Tom operates. He is a liar, manipulator, and murderer but never sees himself as a villain. The starkness adds so much to the story and forces you to fall into the world through Tom’s eyes. The colorless visuals also play into the time period and downplay the violent aspects.
There is never a time when you truly believe Scott’s Ripley will do what is morally correct, though you constantly wish he would. As an audience, you are questionably hoping that Tom gets away with his crimes, leaving you wondering why. He shows no remorse for his actions, which are rather calculated reactions to his violent tendencies. Scott is utterly captivating in the role as you cannot take your eyes off of him.
My main issue with the series is its pacing. As a fan of the book and movie adaptation, this series felt slow and seemed to remove elements from the earlier versions rather than adding them. The eight episode limited series format warranted the addition of more characters or new components that just weren’t there. By following this structure, the series felt slow and dull in terms of action and events. Somehow going from a two hour and twenty minute film to eight hours of episodes stretched the story too thin and didn’t add enough exciting elements to keep viewers engaged throughout.
Marge played by Dakota Fanning also lacked depth in this series, making it hard to empathize with her when things went sour. She had no likable qualities and was played in a rather dull tone. Andrew Scott absolutely carries this series entirely. He plays Tom Ripley in a far darker fashion that Matt Damon, and it reads so well. I wish we could’ve seen him interact with a larger variety of characters instead of a majority of the scenes being solo shots.
If you’re a fan of the film and book, it is worth a watch as it has a very distinct style and tone. Andrew Scott fans will also be delighted by this display of range, but as a stand alone series it does not have mass appeal.
Ripley is streaming on Netflix.
