The Unforgettable Style of Gwyneth Paltrow in The Talented Mr. Ripley

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Twenty years ago, Matt Damon, Jude Law, and Gwyneth Paltrow captivated audiences as Tom Ripley, Dickie Greenleaf, and Marge Sherwood respectively in The Talented Mr. Ripley. Set against the backdrop of the Italian Riviera, the threesome beguiled filmgoers with their magnetic allure in a psychologically thrilling story about extravagance, love, and identity theft.

And while many fashion journalists have fawned over the menswear—the relaxed, retro wardrobe of Dickie and the East Coast preppy silhouettes of Tom—Paltrow could have easily been forgotten in the mix. Yet the actress pulled off her character with aplomb thanks to the costume design of Ann Roth. After all, Marge’s distinctive change in style happening half-way through the film signals a major shift in the narrative.

The Talented Mr. Ripley—based on the novel by Patricia Highsmith of the same name and directed by the late, acclaimed Anthony Minghella—follows the emotionally fraught sociopath, Tom, who nurses a dangerous obsession with Dickie, a blue-blooded American playboy taking it easy in Italy with his high society girlfriend, Marge. When the couple first appear together on screen, the sun shines brightly on them as they’re lounging on the lush sands of the Italian coast. Their outfits follow suit: Marge in her high-waist, sailboat-print bikini and Dickie in his vintage-print swim shorts. Tom has traveled all the way from New York City in the hopes of persuading Dickie to return to the States. Little does Dickie know that his father—a shipbuilding tycoon—employed Tom to coax him back home in order to work in the family business.

Dickie and Marge invite Tom to stay with them in their villa as Dickie mistakenly believes their new friend is a fellow Princeton graduate. They also share mutual interests like music and La dolce vita. At this point, Marge remains clad in Mediterranean mode with a range of puff-sleeve fitted blouses or her signature white, tied-at-the-waist, button-down collared shirts over a bandeau and full, mid-length skirts. Tom eventually adjusts to life in Europe and adopts more fitted clothing, getting as close as he can to mimicking Dickie’s luxe and languid style.

Everything about Dickie—from his charisma, to his wealth, relationships, and lifestyle—becomes all Tom desires. After a series of unfortunate events, Dickie becomes disenchanted with Tom and the conflict eventually escalates to murder: Tom kills Dickie on a boat off the coast of San Remo.

As Marge discovers clues that lead her to believe Tom took Dickie’s life, she emerges as the one who knew all along. In every scene after Dickie’s murder, gone are the laid-back, softer, girlish tones—headband included. Instead, her ensembles become more dramatic: the obvious comparisons to Hitchcock blondes come to light. In an interview with Minghella, he once said, “Hitchcock would have cast Gwyneth in anything.”

The nods to the most famous Hitchcock blonde, Grace Kelly, surface at this stage complete with black cat-eye sunglasses, tailored trench coats with full skirts, and her sublime, strapless, navy blue evening gown at the opera. During the daylight hours, her periwinkle coat with a heart-shaped pleat on the chest still reminds filmgoers of her dainty, feminine side.

But the statement-making, matching leopard coat and pillbox hat convey the most exclamation points ever. Marge’s instincts as a fierce femme kick in to catch Tom for the imposter and villain he is. Her crimson lips and cigarettes as accessories add drama and punctuate her will to bring closure to Dickie’s death.

Speaking about Marge two decades ago, Paltrow admitted her admiration for the character: “I didn’t realize she was so fantastic and deep and warm and complicated until I began shooting the film.” The same could be equally said about her covetable costumes.

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