10 Movies That Almost Had Much Better Endings

4. Tom's Punishment Is Paranoia - The Talented Mr Ripley

The Official Ending: It sounds like a particularly sadistic logic puzzle. Tom Ripley, murderous sociopath, finds himself on a boat with both his male lover and an acquaintance who knows him as one of his victims. The two sides of his life are coming dangerously close, with the risk of his crimes being unveiled high, so he must decide which person to do away with. He ultimately chooses the former, strangling Peter and forced to accept a lonely life.

The One We Almost Got: Patricia Highsmith's source novel has neither Peter or Cate Blanchett's acquaintance in any form, with this entire dilemma totally absent. Instead, the ending is more subtle, with Ripley having to resign himself to a life of paranoia; he discovers he's got away with the murder of Dickie Greenleaf and the subsequent inheritance scam, but can't shake the feeling that he'll end up in the hands of the law. It's typically down-played by the psychological thriller master.

Why It Would Have Been Better: The representation of Ripley as a gay man misses much of the almost asexual elements represented in later novels, while the whole dilemma feels a little on the nose. It may be more simplistic, but in terms of character the novel gets it spot on.

Watch The Talented Mr Ripley over at Amazon.