Switzerland/2022—directed by Eva Vitija | 83 min. 

This revealing documentary about American author Patricia Highsmith (1921–1995) is based on her notebooks and diaries—discovered posthumously—and the intimate reflections of friends, family and lovers. Like the protagonist of her novel The Talented Mr. Ripley, Highsmith led a double life.

She concealed her lesbianism from her family and her readers; her psychological thrillers, rooted in obsessive passion, grew from the complex life of a child coldly rejected by the mother she adored. Her first novel, Strangers on a Train, was adapted into the classic 1951 Hitchcock film. Her second, The Price of Salt (1952), dared to give a happy ending to a tale of lesbian lovers and was consequently shunned by publishers. Loving Highsmith elegantly weaves passages from the author’s diaries with rare footage to reveal a woman ahead of her time—one who paid dearly for her audacity. In English, German and French with English subtitles. 

“In centering the writer’s sexuality in her lively and captivating documentary, Eva Vitija does a great service... Highsmith’s life is brought sharply into focus.” -Jude Dry, IndieWire