The second movie in the double feature with my nephew yesterday was A Talent for Murder and we both loved it. A young and inexperienced editor named Edward Ridgeway (Alden Ehrenreich) travels from New York to Switzerland to convince the reclusive and misanthropic novelist Patricia Highsmith (Helen Mirren) to write a sixth novel featuring the character Tom Ripley when another editor goes missing after attempting to do the same. Ridgeway's job is contingent upon getting Highsmith to sign a new contract, so after she derisively refuses to revisit Ripley, he offers to collaborate with her because he is such a fan of the character. They eventually begin writing together and create a narrative in which Tom Ripley pursues Clementine Balfour (Olivia Cooke), a young heiress who Rideway met on the train to Switzerland. In the story Ripley contrives to marry Clementine and then murders her aunt Peggy (Juliet Stevenson) so she will inherit her fortune while Ridgeway slowly adopts the persona of Ripley in his interactions with the real Clementine and her aunt. This is a sleek and stylish psychological thriller with glamorous European locations in which art imitates life and then life begins to imitate art. Ehrenreich portrays both Ridgeway and Ripley so the lines are often blurred between what is real and what Highsmith is imagining and it is very fun to watch. I also found the idea that everyone has a dormant capacity to commit murder to be very intriguing. Mirren is having a blast as the diabolical author and Ehrenreich more than holds his own as they go toe to toe in a dangerous game. I definitely recommend this entertaining riff on Highsmith and her most well-known character, especially to fans of both.
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