Florida's Film, Television and the Arts Magazine
A Talent For Murder
Patricia Highsmith was the bigoted, racist, antisemitic, tortured writer who birthed Tom Ripley, the suave, amoral, master con artist, from her singularly brilliant, beautiful mind. She passed away in 1995. Dame Helen Mirren takes on Highsmith’s abrasive, abusive persona, sinking her razor-sharp teeth into the role and shaking it like a shark with a tasty tuna.
In A Talent for Murder, Alden Ehrenreich had the good fortune to be cast as Edward Ridgeway, the antagonist to Mirren’s Highsmith. Mirren must have enjoyed the hell out of the role, taunting and teasing Ridgeway the entirety of the production.
Ehrenreich is playing a double, possibly triple role. He’s the young, bespectacled literary agent sent by Highsmith’s publisher, trying to convince her to write another best-selling Ripley mystery novel. He’s travelled by train to Switzerland, where Highsmith currently lives. Aboard the train, he crosses paths with Clementine Balfour (Olivia Cooke), a vivacious young woman currently visiting her grandfather, while receiving a European education courtesy of her rich Aunt Peggy (Juliet Stevenson). The previous agent sent to court Highsmith has mysteriously disappeared, the only trace remaining are his initials scratched into the guest room’s bedframe. Her publisher enlisted Ridgeway, a self-professed expert in everything Highsmith has ever written, to attempt to court the writer.
Ehrenreich also takes on the role of a deceptive Ripley-ish fellow, with pizzazz and cunning, a character markedly different from that of the agent … or is he? Is this deadly chameleon the real thing or is he merely another concoction in the smoke-filled mind of Highsmith. When he appeared on her doorstep, Highsmith challenged Ridgeway to come up with an exciting storyline. If Highsmith likes his storyline, she’ll sign the contract.
Highsmith’s home is decorated with the tools of her trade – cabinets chock-full of poisons. Display cases filled with a variety of knives and pistols adorn the walls of her home.
The story is circular, clever, literary and quite British, in my opinion.What do I mean by circular? The first scene is a mirror of the last. Additionally, you’re never sure exactly which character Ridgeway is playing at any given moment. The young agent on the train, when first meeting Clem, is dazzled by her. Yet as the tale unfolds, the bookish Edward takes on more of the Ripley-ish character. The Ripley character is plotting something that will definitely end in murder. Not only for his financial gain, but also because he simply likes toying with people.
There are so many layers of this onion that viewers will enjoy peeling - plots and counterplots. It’s a battle of wits, with both Highsmith and Ridgeway believing they have the upper hand. Writers are always asked 'where do you get your ideas'? A Talent For Murder may be an attempt to answer that question as one is never certain if every character and their circumstances are real, or if we are all watching Highsmith's genius at plot and character development take shape for her final Ripley. If you’re a fan of the Knives Out series, or have read the Ripley's or tune in to the delicious mysteries available on PBS, A Talent for Murder is a meta-mystery that will keep you working the clues as they are revealed.
