Inside Steven Zaillian's bold move to shoot Netflix's 'Ripley' in black and white
ROME, ITALY: Netflix's latest release 'Ripley' is generating significant buzz among film enthusiasts for several reasons.
The involvement of Academy Award winner Steven Zaillian, who both wrote and directed the series, is enticing viewers to tune in immediately. However, the standout factor is the way how the series has been shot.
Robert Elswit, who won the Academy Award for Best Cinematography for 'There Will Be Blood', has beautifully shot 'Ripley' in black and white, in line with Zaillian's imagination.
Explaining Steven Zaillian's decision to shoot 'Ripley' in black and white
For the unversed, Netflix's 'Ripley' is an adaptation of Patricia Highsmith's 1955 classic crime novel 'The Talented Mr Ripley'.
It introduces us to a dark and twisted world of conman and serial killer Tom Ripley whose sinister acts are driven by his desire to pursue a lavish lifestyle.
Since the series is set in the bygone times of the 1960s, Zaillian found it fit to experiment with black-and-white cinematography to transport the viewers back in time.
Though his decision is distinctively unusual, setting him apart from other filmmakers (and including his own previous works), Zaillian, in his interview with Vanity Fair, states, “The edition of the Ripley book I had on my desk had an evocative black-and-white photograph on the cover. As I was writing, I held that image in my mind. Black and white fits this story—and it’s gorgeous.”
"I also felt that this story — the one that she told, the one that I wanted to tell — was quite sinister and quite dark. I just couldn’t imagine that taking place in a beautiful Italian setting with bright blue skies and colourful outfits and things like that," he added.
“I knew from the beginning that I wanted to have this high contrast film-noir style. We didn’t want to do anything that was familiar to us… I didn’t want to make a pretty travelogue," Zaillian emphasized.
What does cinematographer Robert Elswit say about 'Ripley'?
Robert Elswit, in his interview with Vanity Fair, narrated the benefits of shooting 'Ripley' in black and white.
He explained, "We picked a great place to do this. Backlight and water are as old as movies, I think. [Laughs] You’re very lucky to find a location where you can take advantage of it, and we did."
Elswit further stated, "You get the ground wet, get a big light up high, far away. And Atrani had really great texture. The cobblestones, the buildings themselves, everything else. That’s what you get in black-and-white—texture."
"That’s just the great example of something that’s been done since the 1920s, and so I’m glad we were able to do it. It’s wonderful. It doesn’t look nearly as interesting, by the way, in color, it just doesn’t," he concluded.
'Ripley' features Andrew Scott in the titular role of Tom Ripley, alongside Johnny Flynn as Dickie Greenleaf, and Dakota Fanning as Marge Sherwood.