Matt Damon: 5 Awesome Performances And 5 That Sucked

By Alex Leadbeater / July 29, 2016

And 5 That Sucked...

5. Tom Ripley - The Talented Mr Ripley

I know what you’re thinking - The Talented Mr Ripley? Isn’t that meant to be one of Damon’s highlights? And, yeah, it’s not a bad film, it’s just not really Ripley.

Rather than Patricia Highsmith’s neurotic, asexual sociopath, Damon’s Tom is much more clear cut, both in mentality and sexuality, and it makes him a lot less interesting an anti-hero to unpack and a much more obvious threat. Moving away from the source though, it's an odd performance. Damon's Tom is mawkish rather than menacing, and fundamentally he’s hard to like - you need to on some level relate with this character, otherwise his misdeeds lose you.

If you want to get a taste of the real Ripley, watch the Italian Purple Noon, or even the John Malkovich version.