The feature blends literary history with a cat-and-mouse psychological game, casting Mirren as a fictionalized version of the reclusive author best known for crafting The Talented Mr. Ripley and Strangers on a Train. Ehrenreich portrays Edward Ridgeway, a junior subeditor dispatched from a New York publishing house to a secluded estate in Switzerland with a singular mission: persuade the acclaimed writer to pen one final installment of her famous anthology. The cast also features Olivia Cooke as a young woman named Clementine Balfour whom Edward meets on a train, alongside Juliet Stevenson as Peggy.
Rehearsing in a Fugue State
Getting the psychological drama to the screen required overcoming its own behind-the-scenes hurdles. Just before Christmas in 2023, Ehrenreich, Mirren, and director Anton Corbijn spent a week inside a Los Angeles hotel room painstakingly rehearsing the script adapted from Joanna Murray-Smith’s stage play Switzerland.
Stepping Into the Mind of Patricia Highsmith and Tom Ripley
The narrative unfolds as a tête-à-tête inside Highsmith’s Swiss estate, interspersed with reenactments where Ehrenreich embodies Ripley himself. To prepare for the dual role, Ehrenreich joined a storied cinematic lineage that includes legendary portrayals by John Malkovich, Andrew Scott, Dennis Hopper, Alain Delon, and Matt Damon. For Mirren, inhabiting a literary icon required shedding personal vanity. She observed that Highsmith famously wore men’s trousers and shirts, shunning femininity entirely. Contrastingly, Mirren noted, I’m quite a feminine sort of woman in my own world. I love a corset and makeup and flair, and I love high heels. I love all of that,
making the sartorial shift essential to unlocking the author’s complex, uncompromising persona.
Reflecting on his past work, Ehrenreich noted that playing such a buttoned-up and toned-down character stands in stark contrast to the explosive energy he was permitted to unleash in previous projects like Weapons and Fair Play.
Blurring the Lines Between Fiction and Reality
As the editorial assignment progresses, Highsmith pushes her visitor to plot out his own fictionalized version of Ripley’s murders. The exercise blurs the boundaries of inspiration and reality as Edward begins to identify with the manipulative antihero.
Critics have offered differing views on how the stage adaptation translates to film. One reviewer noted that the intimate stand-offs occasionally lack significant heat and friction compared to traditional crime thrillers, while others highlight the picture as a perverse puzzle box driven by sharp performances.