Based on her previously unpublished diaries, Loving Highsmith sheds light on the private life and public career of the bestselling novelist, focusing on her lifelong quest for identity and troubled romantic entanglements. Family, friends, her own voice, and choice archive material are interwoven to draw a vivid portrait of one of the most prolific female authors of all time. Highsmith wrote over twenty-two novels, many of which were adapted for both cinema and television; the documentary foregrounds the importance of her second, partly autobiographical novel, The Price of Salt, adapted as Carol by Todd Haynes, a lesbian story with a happy ending in 1950s America.

Notes by David O’Mahony

The IFI is delighted to welcome director Eva Vitija to take part in a post-screening Q&A.

Screening as part of our Patricia Highsmith on Screen season, July 2nd to 24th.