Anthony Minghella: Cold Mountain/The Talented Mr Ripley/The english Patient 2005

A triple bill of films by director Anthony Minghella. ‘Cold Mountain’ (2003) is a sweeping American Civil War drama based on the novel by Charles Frazier. Jude Law stars as Inman, a wounded Confederate soldier who is slowly making the perilous journey back to his home town of Cold Mountain in North Carolina, meeting a string of colourful characters along the way (played by actors including Philip Seymour Hoffman, Natalie Portman, Ray Winstone and Kathy Baker). At home waits Ada Monroe (Nicole Kidman), the pre-war sweetheart to whom he has vowed to return. In his absence Ada, the shy and reserved daughter of a preacher (Donald Sutherland), has befriended the feisty Ruby (Renée Zellweger), a tough-talking young woman who can work the land as well as any man. Ruby supports Ada both emotionally and practically as she waits for Inman’s return – but as the war drags on and her letters go unanswered, Ada finds it increasingly difficult to keep the faith. In ‘The Talented Mr Ripley’ (1999), the charming but penniless Tom Ripley (Matt Damon) is hired by a wealthy magnate to travel to Italy and rescue his son, Dickie (Jude Law), from a life of indolence. Upon arrival, Tom discovers that Dickie has it all – including a beautiful girlfriend, Marge (Gwyneth Paltrow) – and begins to covet his luxurious lifestyle. Although Tom is sexually attracted to Dickie, the latter soon tires of him, and when Tom begins to find himself excluded from Dickie’s coterie, his envy takes a murderous turn. The film is based on Patricia Highsmith’s novel, which also provided the inspiration for the pre-New Wave French classic ‘Plein Soleil’ and Wim Wenders’ ‘The American Friend’. ‘The English Patient’ (1996), based on the novel by Michael Ondaatje, won nine Oscars, including Best Picture. During World War Two a badly-burned pilot, known only as ‘the English patient’ (Ralph Fiennes), is cared for in a Canadian military medical unit by nurse Hana (Juliette Binoche). As the dying patient’s memory returns, he tells Hana his story – of how he embarked on a passionate affair with Katherine (Kristin Scott Thomas), the wife of one of his colleagues. Meanwhile, intelligence agent Caravaggio (Willem Dafoe) tells Hana that he suspects the English patient of being a spy for the Germans.