Ripley Under Ground (2005)

• Year: 2005
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0219171/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/ripley_under_ground
• Metacritics:
• Available in: 720p, 1080p,
• Language:
• MPA Rating:
• Genre:
• Runtime: min
• Director:
• Cast:
• Keywords: london, england, based on novel or book, cocaine,

	5.9/10
	37% – Critics
	false% – Audience

Ripley Under Ground Storyline

After his friend, a hot young artist, is killed, a resourceful American man living in London covers up the crime and tries to keep the friend’s name alive in order to exploit his legacy and reap millions in the process.—Anonymous

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Ripley Under Ground Movie Reviews

Accidental, Not Purposely Ripley

This film is entertaining. Just imagine the character of Barry Pepper as someone else and not Ms. Patricia Highsmith’s Thomas Ripley, you will be engrossed and not so disappointed. For me, I can’t do that. I have already been impressed by both Matt Damon’s and John Malkovich’s Ripley, whose performances are so right one can’t help feeling that they really play the same person at different ages, despite two completely different look and totally separate productions. I am not so sure who gets it wrong between Barry Pepper who plays him or Roger Spottiswoode the director. Thomas Ripley is not an accidental psychopath. He is a professional one who is completely conscious of all his actions and perfectly comfortable with them. He has excellent taste equipped with the vast knowledge of everything beyond his means, so he cheats, steals, and kills for such yearning. Tom Ripley never protests or acts against the mainstream. He simply has his own ways and means, and executes them rather effectively. Pepper’s Ripley is not even close. His Ripley is boringly human, ordinary, and commonplace. He is supposed to be a genuinely evil spirit who lives well and excels among the sophistication of all kinds. Being an American does not stop him from being well-cultivated and subtle. Ripley’s creator, Ms. Highsmith, was a big fan of him. She protested against people who made so much fuss about “a little murder” around them. See, Ripley is not a criminal but an artist of the most devious kind. This film does not get it. Furthermore, it is a poor choice of either the director or the script writer, or both, to apply comedic tone to this story. Ripley can be fun, but never comedic. Relief moments in Ripley’s stories usually come with arts, good life, and stylishness. If your wish is to penetrate Mr. Ripley’s mind, one of the most unique characters in the literary world, watch “The Talented Mr. Ripley” and “Ripley’s Game” instead.

Dead painters society

The theory that a dead painter’s work will increase the value of his pictures, is at the center of the story. Contrary to what we might have thought, young star Derwatt, a man who seems to have arrived in the world of art in London, does not quite rate as having the clout to push prices up if he is not around anymore. Derwatt, who loves to drive at high speeds suffers a fatal accident right after his adoring fans have bought all his paintings.

Tom Ripley, who is now living in London, shows no means of earning an income and faces eviction from his apartment. He runs with an arty crowd, that includes Derwatt, Bernard, an undiscovered, but talented painter on his own, gallery owner, Jeff Constant, and Cinthia, who seems to be a groupie into that scene. All of them have witnessed the accident and decide to have Bernard produce canvas as though they were Derwatt’s ; after all, the guy can certainly imitate his friend’s style to almost perfection.

Enter Neil Murchisson, a collector of Derwatt’s paintings. He has come to buy more for the museum in Ohio he represents. Since all the production is sold, Ripley and his friends decide to press Bernard into creating a few pictures imitating Derwatt. Murchisson, who insists in buying the next batch of pictures, pushes a check into Jeff’s hands, who in turn is convinced by Tom Ripley to continue the charade, knowing no one will find out the deceit.

Ripley, who has met the gorgeous Heloise Plisson at the opening, decides to follow her to France. Ripley, who comes into some money after the phony Derwatt’s come into the market, decides he wants Heloise for himself. He is amazed by what he finds when he gets to France. Heloise, not only is gorgeous, but also she is immensely rich. Her father, who sees right through his daughter’s friend, is powerless because the young woman is smitten from the start with Ripley, the gold digger.

“Ripley Under Ground”, adapted from a Patricia Highsmith’s novel, and directed by Roger Spottisgoode, doesn’t quite have the punch that other, more successful films based on this character had achieved, most notably, in Rene Clement’s “Purple Noon”, and in Liliana Cavani’s “Ripley’s Game”. Those earlier films have powerful and charismatic actors, Alain Delon, and John Malkovich, in the central role. Barry Pepper, an otherwise excellent actor, does what he can with his Tom Ripley, but doesn’t quite pull it. “Ripley Under Ground” is by no means horrible, but it could have been better.

The basic problem with the screenplay by W. Blake Herron and Donald Westlake, is that it never settles into either a crime story, or an Euro-thriller. The best thing in the film is the ensemble cast that was gathered for it. Alan Cumming does quite well with the straight part, of the ambitious art dealer. Jacinta Barrett plays Heloise with charm. Claire Forlini, Douglas Henshall, Tom Wilkinson, and Ian Hart do good work for the director. Willem Dafoe appears as the American art lover who falls prey to the ambitions of these assorted group under the guidance of Tom Ripley.

There is an ironic twist at the conclusion of the film, which comes quite unexpectedly, but we had already sensed was a possibility.

Released at long last…

Filmed back in 2004, but left on the shelf for 3 years, ‘Ripley Under Ground’ aka ‘White On White’ has been released on DVD in Europe.

Barry Pepper plays Ripley as something of a low-key rock-star – long hair, a close shave and charisma to burn – and the tone of the thing is far lighter than any of the previous incarnations – ‘Purple Noon’ ,’The American Friend’, ‘The Talented Mr. Ripley’, ‘Ripley’s Game’, etc.

Some early reviewers have referred to it as a ‘comedy’, but it’s not, really. Unfortunately, the lighter tone actually hurts the film a bit, because this outing paints Mr. Ripley as less of a menace and sociopath than any of the Ripley films that have preceded it.

This interpretation apparently sprang from a comment that Ms. Highsmith made about the films adapted of her novels: She apparently felt that the films missed the humor of her character and the droll wit of her dark plots. But the humor in this effort tends to undermines the suspense.

Beside having freed Mr. Pepper from the short-haired grunt roles that he usually plays, the film really allows Alan Cumming and Claire Forlani to shine in ways that they usually aren’t allowed to when they are shoe-horned into American accents. She is officially excused from having participated in ‘Meet Joe Black’.

It’s a good, but not great film. The delight was seeing Barry Pepper stretch-out in the kind of role he’s seldom given.

I typically enjoy the Ripley films and novels for their psychopathy, but this was different enough to be enjoyable. If you come across it on cable or the Shanghai bootleg carrels try not to overlook it.

*** out of *****