Based on the 1955 novel by highbrow crime writer Patricia Highsmith, The Talented Mr. Ripley begins with promise and fizzles into conventionality. The major differences between the films lie not in plot but in characterization. Matt Damon's puppyish portrayal of Tom couldn't seem more distant to Alain Delon's brooding sociopath with the steel-enforced spine. As flawed antiheroes, the two Toms share a similar function. Protagonists are usually presented as positive figures.
Antiheroes represent the darker urges of the human ego.
The shadowy French film took clues from American film noir. The Talented Mr. Ripley might have surpassed its European predecessor. Law's dapper mug has appeared in many small, independent pictures. His smirk makes Damon's Tom Ripley resemble bones on a plate after a meal. However, once Law exits stage left, the film loses much of its languid glamour.