The Talented Patricia Highsmith — and Why Her Stories Work on Film

Spring feels like an ideal time to get tangled up in a mystery, as the snow melts away to uncover what was buried in the fall.

There’s something seductive about cozying up with a spellbinding tale that requires the reader’s rapt attention as the characters become entangled in a web of lies.

Often the best of these tales are adapted into films; it’s often disappointing to see details lost in translation in the leap from print to picture.

One notable exception is the work of author Patricia Highsmith, famous for the psychological thrillers she wrote mainly in the 1940s and 1950s.

I’ve yet to be disappointed by any of the big screen versions of her tales.

‘Deep Water’

A new one, “Deep Water,” was released on Hulu this past March. Watching the tales she crafted unfold on the screen, viewers will likely find Highsmith’s brand of suspense magnified and her characters rendered more empathetic. Dangerous games are played where the quickest hand wins, and characters are forced to consider how much they’ll compromise to have the stars align in their favor.

‘The Talented
Mr. Ripley’

Directed by Anthony Minghella, “The Talented Mr. Ripley” from 1999 is, I believe, an underrated masterpiece from start to finish. Like countless stories of suspense, “Ripley” opens on a voiceover narrating the titular character’s remorse for his mistakes. For Tom Ripley, it starts with a borrowed jacket.

The affluent Greenleafs spot Tom wearing a Princeton jacket during a concert and presume that he knows their son Dickie, a recent Princeton graduate. Rather than admit the truth, Tom plays along. The opening credits are still rolling when Mr. Greenleaf persuades Tom to go find Dickie in Italy and persuade him to come home.

After meticulous preparations for the journey (including listening to Dickie’s favorite music), Tom arrives in the fictional town of Mongibello, where Dickie’s been living an American playboy’s life in Europe. An intense friendship sparks as Tom is invited into Dickie’s dazzling world of connections, wealth and freedom.

Yet while Ripley declares them “brothers,” it’s not long before Dickie grows weary of Tom’s constant presence and makes it clear it’s time to move on. One ghastly moment of rage, and Tom finds a new use for his ability to impersonate “practically anybody” as he assumes Dickie’s identity.

The film features an all-star cast that exemplifies Highsmith’s story under the care of an accomplished director. From the breathtaking view of Italy  as it might have looked in the 1950s to the soundtrack that magnifies the story’s twists and turns, this film is a favorite at my house. With every viewing, I’m tempted to tally Ripley’s lies, all the while knowing I’d lose count halfway through the film.

‘Strangers
on a Train’

While “Ripley” focuses on mistaken identities, “Strangers on a Train” (1951)  is centered on mistaken intentions.

Adapted from Highsmith’s 1950 novel of the same name, director Alfred Hitchcock’s highly acclaimed film opens with tennis star Guy Haines riding the train, intent on finalizing his divorce. He strikes up a conversation with a stranger, Bruno Anthony, who’s taken an interest in Guy’s situation and offers a solution that might benefit them both.

Having fantasized methods for committing the perfect murder, Bruno suggests the idea of strangers exchanging murders — in their case, Bruno would kill Guy’s unfaithful ex-wife while Guy would kill Bruno’s overbearing father. Guy evaluates Bruno’s idea with amusement before disembarking the train, not knowing Bruno’s mistakenly taken his listening as agreement.

Visiting Guy at his girlfriend’s home, Bruno reveals he’s carried out his end of their exchange, much to Guy’s horror. Insisting they planned the exchange on the train, Bruno implies it’s Guy’s turn to follow through, lest he risk the possibility of being arrested for murder.

Like many of Hitchcock’s films, “Strangers on a Train” kept my eyes locked on the screen and, in anticipation of the darkness ahead, distrustful of any lighthearted moments.

The suspense of tracking Bruno’s whereabouts is enough to send a shiver down a viewer’s spine, and Hitchcock knows how to play with our unease.