The Talented Mr. Ripley

ParamountWhile it may not quite qualify as a masterpiece of suspense, this adaptation of Patricia Highsmith's thriller is certainly the most skilled, engrossing homage to Alfred Hitchcock in ages. Directed by Oscar winner Anthony Minghella (The English Patient) with many nods to the master, this picture boasts gorgeous, Italian seaside locations; layers of romantic Machiavellian intrigue; honest-to-goodness surprises; a goose-pimply, Bernard Herrmann-inspired score; and a glamorous, talented cast headed by Matt Damon as a wildly deceptive hanger-on who conspires with psychopathic determination to insert himself into the lives of Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow with deadly results. A revival, in spirit, of Technicolor Hitchcockian noir, this is recommended. (R. Blackwelder)