Ripley's Game
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Ripley's Game is the third novel in Patricia Highsmith's Ripley series (the Ripliad), written in 1974.
It was loosely adapted in 1977 by Wim Wenders as "Der Amerikanische Freund", (The American Friend). [1] (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075675/) It was also adapted as "Ripley's Game" (2002) by director Liliana Cavani with John Malkovich as Tom Ripley. [2] (http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0265651/)
In the novel, Ripley, wealthy, married and wanting to lay low after his art forgery scam was nearly detected by the police, is insulted at a party by a neighbor, Jonathon Trevanny. As revenge, Ripley tells his partner-in-crime, Reeves Minot, that Trevanny is an assassin and would be ideal to kill a competitor. Trevanny, married with a young son and dying of leukemia, resists at first but finally agrees when he receives news--fabricated by Ripley--that his condition is much worse. Convincing himself it's for his family's sake, Trevanny becomes Reeves' killer-for-hire. Suddenly, during a hit on a train that seems destined to go wrong, Ripley appears to help Trevanny, and from there becomes a kind of protector to his former victim. When the Mafia sends their thugs after the pair, Trevanny has to become much more ruthlessly creative, while Ripley must learn compassion and selflessness in order to survive.