Enter The Ripleyverse
Doppelgängers and Mimetic Desire Through the Looking Glass
The cinematic portrayal of charismatic identity thieves or “dark halves”, an archetype perfected by the author Patricia Highsmith, has been widely embraced by the age of streaming media. This trend illuminates the appeal of the anti-social characterization in response to contemporary social fragmentation. Protagonists such as Oliver from Saltburn, Villanelle from Killing Eve, and Tom Ripley all serve to explore the role of mimicry in assimilating of mimetic desires.
The theory of mimetic desire posits that our wants are imitative, proliferating as we covet what appears to be valued by others. Artwork, accessories, travel, and other symbols of envy reinforce the totems and fetishes of inclusion. These items are more than props; they represent the profound aspirations associated with acceptance, signaling an “one of us” identity.
The characters in these stories amplify this phenomenon by embodying the extreme outcomes of such desires. They manipulate and deceive, not only to achieve what others have but to become indistinguishable from the apex of what is valued. This mirroring extends beyond simple identity sampling. It delves into the complexities of persona and the ethical boundaries crossed in the pursuit of the perception of inclusion. They applify and reflect the insider/ outsider boundaries.
With Oliver’s character Saltburn, the pretender anti-hero’s narrative is underscored by an “eat the rich” subtext that incisively critiques wealth inequalities and inherited privileges.
Patricia Highsmith’s dark twin literary influence, adapted into more than twenty films, traverses from the chillingly urbane villainy of Hitchcock’s adaptation in Strangers on a Train — a 1951 classic — to the various incarnations of the enigmatic Tom Ripley. In Netflix’s most recent adaptation the series, Ripley (2024) this mirroring is manifested through visual motifs such as doubles and repetition of camera framing to amplify the symbolism of the maladaptive as both outlier and exemplar.
The visualization of mirrors and dualism emphasizes the imitative behaviors that these outsiders — those marginalized by neurological differences, personality disorders, or other forms of social exclusion linked to passing rituals — frequently adopt in their pursuit of blending in. These protagonists act as reflectors, highlighting not only their strategies for personal survival but also the broader societal rifts that arise from how traditional structures exclude them.
Through this perspective, the anti-hero’s journey goes beyond mere personal ambition, situating adaptive identity at the height of society’s elite. While the hero’s journey typically follows a path of virtue, leading to triumph and moral clarity, this type of anti-hero’s journey is marked by a trajectory, that delves into moral ambiguity, and a more nuanced resolution that holds a mirror up to the darker bi-products of consumption as culture.
“Tom had long realized that conventional morality was merely a facade, a construct created by society to maintain order.”
–The Talented Mr. Ripley
The concept of mimetic desire is intricately woven into the fabric of these narratives. Villenelle, Oliver and Tom’s journeys are all driven by their intense desires to imitate which transforms them into doppelgängers of their targets. This imitation game involves adopting their lifestyle and affectations, while effectively making them stylistic ‘dark halves’ to the personas they mimic.
This dynamic is especially compelling as it showcases how Tom Ripley, through his interactions with his foil Dickie Greenleaf, not only mirrors but also attempts to absorb him and in many ways exceeds him in talents such as painting, dress, language and affectation. He becomes the better Dickie.
Tom proceeds to employ his chameleon-like abilities to transform into an Italian, seamlessly assimilating into his surroundings by perfecting the subtleties of language, posture, and facial hair, thereby surpassing the culture of American expats.
The deeper Tom engages in this mimicry, the more his true self-aligns with this borrowed identity, highlighting the transformative power of mimetic desire like a kind of diabolical Gatsby. This psychological entanglement illustrates the destructive potential of craving to not just emulate but replace, positioning Ripley as the bi-product of his impulses.
“Tom felt a familiar thrill, a sense of power, as he adjusted his watch and put on the suit he had selected for the occasion. He couldn’t help but admire himself in the mirror.”
–The Talented Mr. Ripley
The sympathies of the audience are also manipulated in a manner similar to the fictional targets. Ripley, Saltburn, and Killing Eve skillfully draw us in with their charismatic villains, even as we remain acutely aware of the harm and malevolence these characters embody.
Killing Eve, a series centered around the intense, cat-and-mouse game between MI6 operative Eve Polastri and the enigmatic assassin Villanelle, uses mirrors and the two women's reflections frequently as a visual symbol of their dynamic. The series frequently places its characters in front of reflective surfaces, using these moments to pause and reflect on their mimicry. In this case Eve is a knowing participant in the manipulative dance. Villanelle, in particular, is often shown observing her own reflection, a motif that underscores her distinct self-awareness and her mask-like practice.
The question of dark empathy between Eve and Villanelle is central to the series. As Eve becomes more obsessed with capturing Villanelle, she begins to adopt the assassin’s traits, and style blurring the lines between hunter and hunted. Their identities begin to overlap, reflecting each other’s darkest desires and fears. This mirroring is not just a plot device but a deep, existential probe into what it means to lose oneself. The question of whether Eve’s character falls into the categories of borderline personality, post-traumatic stress disorder, or other categories related to the sociopathic spectrum is a central puzzle of the narrative.
“I think my monster encourages your monster, right?”
— Villanelle, Killing Eve
Similarly, Bergman’s Persona (1966) uses the visual motif of mirroring to explore the convergence of identities between Alma, a young nurse, and her patient, Elisabet Vogler, a stage actress who has suddenly stopped speaking. The film’s intense use of close-ups and compositions juxtapose the characters’ faces, sometimes overlapping them so that they appear to be fusing into one. The same visual motif is used in Killing Eve’s broadcast title and brand design, in posters, promo and social media.
The use of mirrors in Persona involves key scenes where the characters are confronting their reflections, challenging the viewers’ perception of which character they are actually observing. This not only deepens the narrative’s exploration of identity but also invites the audience to question the nature of the self and its stability when mirrored through another.
The social media-fueled ethos of image crafting and identity manipulation, mirroring the ways individuals curate personas online to achieve status or influence aligns with the Ripleyverse’s character profiles of deceit and adaptability. This highlights a broader cultural fascination with the idea of ‘becoming’ someone else as a method to gain what one desires — be it wealth, fame, or social capital. This interplay invites audiences to reflect on their own engagements with remixing online personas and self projection.
References
Laist, Randy. “Cinema of simulation: hyperreal Hollywood in the long 1990s.” (2015).
Milner, Ryan M. “The world made meme: Discourse and identity in participatory media.” (2012).
Indick, William. Psycho thrillers: Cinematic explorations of the mysteries of the mind. McFarland, (2013).
Peters, Fiona. Anxiety and evil in the writings of Patricia Highsmith. Routledge, (2016).
Pettey, Homer B., ed. Mind Reeling: Psychopathology on Film. State University of New York Press, 2020.
Wilson, Andrew. Beautiful shadow: A life of Patricia Highsmith. Bloomsbury Publishing USA, (2008).
Zdunkiewicz, Lech. “Sociopaths as Antiheroes of the Streaming-Media Age.” (2018)
Citations
Earl, Graeme P. “At the edges of the lens: Photography, graphical constructions and cinematography.” Digital Archaeology: Bridging Method and Theory. London: Routlege (2006): 191–210.
Lykken, David T. “Psychopathy, sociopathy, and antisocial personality disorder.” Handbook of psychopathy 23 (2018): 22.
Mangrum, Benjamin. “The age of anxiety: Patricia Highsmith, existential psychology, and the “decline” of American naturalism.” American Literature 87.4 (2015): 769–798.
Zdunkiewicz, Lech. “Aligning with sociopaths: Character engagement strategies in Highsmith’s and Minghella’s Talented Mr. Ripleys.” Text Matters: A Journal of Literature, Theory and Culture 11 (2021): 119–136.
