Do we like them?

Do we like Tom Ripley?

A character from The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)

Our score: 1 out of 10. Charming and good at mimicry, but he lies, steals and manipulates people to get what he wants. We wouldn't back him, though he is hard to look away from.

Tom Ripley is a young man in 1950s New York with little money and a talent for imitating people. A shipping magnate mistakes him for a Princeton classmate of his son, Dickie Greenleaf. He pays Tom to go to Italy and persuade Dickie to come home. Tom jumps at the chance.

In Italy he is drawn into the sunny, glamorous life of Dickie and his circle, including Dickie's girlfriend Marge. Tom is eager, observant and good at being whoever people want him to be, and the film makes it easy to see why they like him. Underneath, he is deeply envious and lonely, and he lies as easily as he breathes.

We score him low because charm and sympathy aren't the same as goodness. His loneliness explains him, but it doesn't excuse what he does to get the life he wants. The story invites us to feel for him while he keeps choosing deceit over honesty. He does a great deal of harm and almost no good, so we don't back him.