Rating: 3 out of 4 Kisses 💋💋💋

What if the woman who dreamed up Tom Ripley was just as dangerous as her most famous creation? That’s the delicious question at the heart of A Talent for Murder, a stylish, slow-burning chamber thriller that turns the act of writing into a deadly game.

Set in 1995, the film finds legendary crime novelist Patricia Highsmith (Helen Mirren) living as a recluse in her Swiss Alps home, chain-smoking, drinking and keeping the world at arm’s length. Enter Edward Ridgeway (Alden Ehrenreich), an eager young literary agent from New York with one mission: convince Highsmith to write one final Ripley novel. She agrees to play along, but only if he helps her work out how to commit the perfect murder. A fictional one, of course. Or is it?

Helen Mirren Is Fantastic

Let me just say it: Helen Mirren is fantastic. Her Highsmith is prickly, cruel, funny and fascinating all at once, a woman who wields her intelligence like a knife. Mirren doesn’t soften her for a second, and that’s exactly what makes her so magnetic. Every time she’s on screen, you can’t look away, and you’re never quite sure whether she’s toying with Ridgeway or planning his demise.

Alden Ehrenreich Holds His Own

Going toe to toe with Dame Helen is no small task, but Alden Ehrenreich is terrific as Edward Ridgeway. He starts out seemingly bumbling and out of his depth, then keeps revealing new layers until you start to wonder who’s really in control. The push and pull between these two is the engine of the film, and it’s a pleasure to watch them spar.

A Film That Takes Its Time

What I love most is that A Talent for Murder takes its time. Director Anton Corbijn, the visionary behind Control and The American, isn’t in a rush, and that patience pays off. The film genuinely digs into the creative process: where ideas come from, how a writer gets inside the head of a killer, and the dark linkages between Patricia Highsmith and the murderous worlds she created on the page. It’s a beautiful, thoughtful exploration of how thin the line between author and character can become, and it blurs reality and fiction in ways that kept me guessing.

Why Not 4 Kisses?

As much as I admired it, A Talent for Murder doesn’t quite reach perfection. Its stage roots show at times, and confining so much of the story to one house can make it feel more like a filmed play than a full cinematic experience. The deliberate pace that I love will also test some viewers’ patience, and Olivia Cooke is underused in a role that deserved more to do.

The Verdict

Still, this is a sharp, darkly funny and wonderfully acted thriller, anchored by two performances worth the price of admission. Highsmith fans, book lovers and anyone who enjoys a good psychological cat-and-mouse game will be in heaven.

I’m giving A Talent for Murder 3 out of 4 Kisses. Mwah!

A Talent for Murder is rated R and opens in theaters Friday, October 23.