Now Showing: Echoes of Red

 

Echoes of Red

Genre: Thriller / Crime

Director: Emerald Fennell

Writer: Mo Buck

Cast: Cate Blanchett, Jeffrey Wright, Luke Evans, Jessica Barden, Vanessa Kirby, Robin Wright, Mark Strong, Ben Whishaw

Plot: Monday, 8:12 AM

A gated manor sits on top of a hill. A splendid garden, tended by silent employees under the bright Monday sun. Surely the owners of the mansion lead a peaceful, idyllic life, right? The gardeners work in silence, save for the hum of sprinklers and the distant crackle of police radios. Evelyn’s (Cate Blanchett) heels click like a metronome as she descends the steps, a woman keeping time even as her world unravels. She exits through the front door, big sunglasses on her face, pristinely dressed as always. She towers over the police officer following her, Det. Nora Pierce (Jessica Barden). The gardeners follow with their eyes as the squad car carrying their boss exits through the gates. Inside the squad car, Det. Pierce allows Evelyn to contact her lawyer, which she accepts, but not without saying that she’ll live to regret this, it is all a mistake.

As they arrive at the station, Ms. Moreau is taken into interrogation by Pierce. She is joined by her partner and now lead investigator, Lt. James Royce (Jeffrey Wright). Royce tells Ms. Moreau they’ll wait for her counsel to arrive before starting. Evelyn assures them they won’t learn anything she hasn’t already told Pierce, whose diligent notes she has kept in mind. They’re interrupted by Catherine Voss (Robin Wright), Evelyn’s sorority sister, long-time friend and legal counsel. She immediately embraces Evelyn and says she’s sorry for her loss and asks her how she’s holding up. Evelyn says she’s still in shock and can’t believe she has to go through this. Voss analyzes the two detectives and asks if they realize who her client truly is — and warns they’ll regret treating her like a common criminal. Royce calmly reminds her that he’ll be the judge of that. They just want to shed light on the moments before Evelyn’s husband was found dead in the early hours of Monday morning. Royce’s phone buzzes on the table. He glances at the name : Chief Commissioner Delorme. He silences it. Catherine notices, and so does Evelyn.

Hours earlier - Monday, 3:25 AM

Evelyn panics as she sees her husband, Patrick (Luke Evans), collapsed on the floor - blood spreading across the beige carpet like a dark halo. For a second, she’s certain he blinks. Then he doesn’t. She frantically grabs the nearest phone, or maybe she already had it in her hand; she can’t remember. She dials 911, telling the operator she thinks her husband is dead. She starts to cry as she hangs up.

Hours earlier – Sunday, 10:45 PM

Evelyn dines with her husband at the long oak table, enjoying a quiet evening for once. They discuss plans for an upcoming charity gala, promising themselves not to repeat last year’s mistakes. Patrick jokes that the hors d’oeuvres were “criminally bad,” he’ll have a word with the charity coordinator, Vivienne, about that. It draws a laugh from Evelyn — though something in her tone feels off, a half-beat too flat. She notices a shadow moving in the hallway but dismisses it as the wind shifting a curtain. Her phone buzzes, from Catherine. Evelyn had texted her earlier to confirm their Monday morning meeting. The reply startles her: Everything will be fine, for now. Evelyn rereads the message several times, and each read subtly changes its meaning — reassurance, warning, threat. She can’t tell which anymore.

Immediately before the discovery – Monday, 3:05 AM

Evelyn wakes to a faint sound — a floorboard creaking, or maybe the clock ticking louder than usual. She glances at the bedside clock: 3:05 AM. The house feels colder than it should. Patrick’s side of the bed is empty. She slips into her robe and walks down the hallway. A few lights are on. On the desk, she notices two Post-it notes covered in her handwriting, but she doesn’t remember writing them. The words blur when she tries to read them.Patrick’s coat hangs over a chair. She’s sure she saw him in the study earlier — or did she only dream that? She calls his name. No answer. She retraces her steps. The rooms look slightly different than she remembers — as if the house itself is rearranging while she moves through it. She pins the discordance on her sleepiness, it’s the middle of the night after all.

Monday, 9:45 AM

Lt. Royce asks Evelyn to recount the events leading up to the discovery of her husband’s body. She’s pale, but composed. In a slow, deliberate rhythm, she reconstructs her version of the night. She sayd she woke up at 3:30 AM after hearing a loud thud from the study. She claims she called 911 immediately, around 3:31 or 3:32, she can’t quite remember. Nora quietly points out in her notebook that the call was lodged at 3:37. Evelyn continues, she found Patrick lying on the study carpet, she thinks he fell and hit his head. Royce corrects her, Patrick’s body was found in the bedroom, not the study. Catherine interjects, reminding them Evelyn is in shock, that she just lost her husband of ten years. Evelyn nods, a flicker of irritation crossing her eyes, but her attention drifts to the wall clock. It ticks loudly. She glances at her watch, it’s off by a few minutes, maybe, but she says nothing. Luke Morgan (Ben Whishaw), the forensics expert enters the room and gives Royce a folder. He tells Royce the blood pattern analysis is done, and doesn’t line up with a fall. Evelyn tilts her head and asks what fall they’re talking about. Royce says she just told them she believes Patrick fell and hit his head.

Later that morning

Evelyn sits alone in the interrogation room. The mirror reflects her oddly, her expression lagging a half-second behind. She thinks she sees movement behind her, but there’s nothing there. Her gaze keeps returning to the clock. It’s wrong. Or her watch is. She can’t tell anymore, and the uncertainty gnaws at her. Royce and Pierce re-enter, carrying photographs: one of the crime scene, Patrick’s body unmistakably in the bedroom; another showing Evelyn’s hands, faint traces of blood along the creases. She shakes her head. She doesn’t remember any of it. Luke, the forensic expert, steps in behind them, quietly placing a small evidence folder on the table. Preliminary analysis; traces of another person’s blood on the carpet and under the fingernails. Evelyn freezes. She shakes her head again. I don’t remember any of that she stutters. Royce asks her about Catherine, confirming Evelyn received a text from her after dinner. Evelyn insists she did. Royce slides a printout across the table, a screenshot from her phone; the timestamp: 11:58 PM. A beat of panic flashes across Evelyn’s face, but she forces composure. Across the table, Catherine observes Det. Royce, he noticed that flicker too. The detective, calm and almost gentle, might be better at his job that she expected. Royce’s phone vibrates again. He steps outside. Commissioner Delorme (Mark Strong) is on the other line, he tells Royce to stop bothering the Moreau’s. Their foundation financed the new hospital wing, he needs to stop crucifying the poor widow over a domestic tragedy. Royce tells him he suspects it’s not just domestic and Delorme orders him to make it look like it is. Luke lingers near the doorway, glancing back at Evelyn. His eyes are quiet but not neutral — he knows there’s more beneath the surface, even if he can’t yet say it aloud. Evelyn looks up, meeting his gaze for a fraction of a second, and the shadow of guilt she doesn’t fully understand flickers across her face.

Midday

Evelyn is left with Catherine in the interrogation room. The ticking clock seems inconsistent. She tries to concentrate and retells her version of events to Catherine. She remains convinced Patrick was in the study. She recalls a little blood, not the pool shown in the photographs. She begins to question herself, was there really blood ? Was it in the bedroom or the study. She called 911, but when was it ? It is killing her she doesn’t remember exactly. She can’t remember, the details are hazy. Catherine reassures her friend, saying everything will be fine, just like she texted her. She recalls going to see Vivienne (Vanessa Kirby) hours earlier, there was tension, Vivienne wasn’t happy and Patrick was mentioned, she doesn’t remember why. She remembers dinner with Patrick, they ate veal, or was it chicken, she can’t remember either. Pictures were out of place. Someone else had been in the house ? She notices a chipped wine glass. A faint stain on the carpet. Blood ? Or just wine? She doesn’t know for sure. She remembers hearing a laugh, whose was it ? Patrick’s ? Vivienne’s ? She remembers drinking wine. White ? Red? Or was it a rosée ? Catherine puts her hand on Evelyn’s shoulder, urging her to remain calm. Evelyn glances in the mirror, a flicker of guilt on her own face. She whispers to herself, did I ? No… I don’t remember. Catherine whispers that everything will be fine.

Afternoon

Royce and Pierce walk back in with new photographs, Pierce still carrying her notebook. They ask Evelyn to walk them through her memories of Sunday evening again. Catherine says they already did, pointing out the notebook, but Royce wants to do it again to clarify some things. She reminds them about the out of place picture frames, the shadow she thinks she saw, the chipped wine glass, the stain on the carpet, the little bit of blood she saw near Patrick. Royce points out the inconsistencies. Her fingerprints were found on the picture frames and no one else’s. There was no chipped wine glass anywhere in the house. He lifts a photo. You said there was just a little blood here, he says. He taps on the image; that’s a pool, Evelyn he adds. Evelyn denies the accusation Royce is implying and so does Catherine. Pierce breaks from her silence and brings up Vivienne. She notices an uneasy look from Evelyn as she mentions Vivienne. Evelyn recalls meeting with Vivienne earlier that day, there was tension but she couldn’t remember what it was about. Royce asked Pierce if she tried to contact Ms. Vivienne and Pierce says they couldn’t reach her. Evelyn keeps glancing at the clock, again, ticking seems off. She remembers handling the picture frames but doesn’t know why. Catherine tries to soothe Evelyn, saying everything will be fine. Royce receives another call from Delorme, which leaves Pierce alone with Evelyn and Catherine. Catherine smiles and asks Pierce what she writes in that big notebook of hers and she says she’s just keeping track of everything to make sure they don’t miss anything important. Catherine’s brow furrows as she glimpses the notebook. Pierce is only observing Evelyn, nothing more. Catherine wonders if every move her friend makes is being recorded. Pierce catches Catherine looking at her notes and closes it. She leaves the room to meet Royce. Evelyn collapses in her chair. Did I ? She stutters as Catherine tries to sooth her.

Afternoon

When Royce and Pierce come back with new photographs Catherine threatens to call Commissioner Delorme and end this circus. Royce only smiles: Delorme already knows. She wonders aloud if that’s why he keeps calling him. Royce shrugs — Delorme likes to be involved. Royce asks her when’s the last time Evelyn met with Vivienne. Evelyn is uneasy, which is diligently noted by Pierce. The ticking pulls her somewhere else — not the station’s clock this time, but another one, louder, echoing through marble walls.

The Evening of an earlier day

Evelyn is annoyed at the clock ticking in the lobby, it’s so loud, it breaks the dreadful silence of the lobby. She imagines Patrick and Vivienne, sleeping together in her own bed. She wonders if he also thinks the elevator is really slow in that building as she longed for Vivienne and couldn’t wait to get his hands down her blouse. Patrick was asleep at home, he has always been a night owl. She grabbed his phone and found out about his affair with Vivienne, their charity coordinator. She had texted Vivienne, or Viv as he called her to meet tonight, but little did she know that Evelyn would show up, and not Patrick. She gets on the elevator as she wonders how long the affair has been going on. Vivienne has been working at the foundation for five years now. Is it a new thing or has it been going on since she came in their lives ? Evelyn is mad at herself she didn’t notice it earlier, she could see it in his eyes. She’s at her door and knocks, her hand trembling. Vivienne opens the door in a white dress, calm, curious. The words blur in Evelyn’s head — a scream, laughter, a glass shattering, the sharp pop of a frame hitting the floor. A splash of red — wine, or not wine. Her hands gripping something. Silence. Then her own voice: “Don’t look at me like that.”

Afternoon

The ticking slows. The room reforms — Catherine’s hand on her arm, the sterile hum of the lights. Evelyn whispers, I fired her. Catherine shushes her, but Evelyn’s gaze fixes on the mirror. The frames… they weren’t there before,” she murmurs. Royce and Pierce exchange a glance, they sense something, but they can’t name it.

Sunday, or Saturday, Can’t remember

The manor feels too quiet, cold. Evelyn walks down the hall, her hair slightly disheveled, her face pale. She’s holding a towel, or a napkin with a faint reddish stain. She pauses, confused, wine perhaps ? She smells it, it’s clean. She drops it in the chute, uneasy. The ticking clock from earlier returns, faint in the background. On the console table, a picture frame is slightly crooked. She corrects it without thinking about it. Evelyn enters the dining room and she opens the curtains. There are two glasses on the table, one chipped, one isn’t. There are plates on the table, they still have crumbs in them. They did she give a day off to the cleaning lady ? She can’t remember. Did they have dinner here or somewhere else ? Evelyn blinks away, the sound of a glass shattering echoes faintly.

Patrick enters the dining room, asking his wife if she’s okay, she’s been quiet all day. She nods absently. He puts new plates on the table and serves red wine. He throws away the chipped glass and picks up the dirty dishes and brings them to the kitchen. He talks about his work, the foundation, a new donor, the next fundraiser. Evelyn focuses on the wine, red, just like… They finish their dinner, Evelyn walks through the hallway and notices a different framed picture, of her and Patrick at a charity gala. The reflection of a chandelier makes it look like a streak of red runs across their faces. She checks her phone and received a text from Catherine : Rest, don’t dwell on it. You did what you had to. Evelyn stares at it, trying to understand the meaning. She tries to scroll up with the conversation has been deleted. She types I keep thinking about her, but deletes it. She sends thank you instead.

She walks past the mirror at the end of the hall — her reflection seems to move half a second late. She looks into it. The hallway behind her flickers: once with her current self, once with the past — Vivienne’s shadow crossing it. The lights flicker softly as the sound of the clock grows louder again — the same ticking she heard in the interrogation room. Evelyn lies awake in bed beside Patrick, eyes open. His soft breathing contrasts with her restless mind.She stares at the ceiling, then turns toward the bedside clock: 2:37 AM. A faint reflection of red wine flashes across the clock face. The ticking continues — slow, steady, wrong.

Sunday Morning ? Monday Morning ? I don’t know

The bedside clock shows 2:59 AM, the reflection of red wine still pulses faintly on the clock. Evelyn lies awake, Patrick shifts beside her, restless. She hears a dripping sound, she thinks of wine, or blood, but it’s the bathroom tap. She hears movement downstairs, a faint clink, like a glass getting chipped. Her mind flickers to Vivienne’s apartment, the falling frame, the glass shattering. She rises quietly, trying to investigate the noise. She looks around the house, chasing a shadow. She calls for Patrick, once, but her voice sounds wrong and distant. She walks through the corridor, shadows long and cold. Every mirror surface catches her reflection half a beat behind. The clock reads 3:18 AM, but it hasn’t ticked forward since she left the bedroom. She sees a Post it note on a desk, she has to set the clock back to daylight savings time. When was that again ? She calls for Patrick again, but when he doesn’t answer she heads back to the bedroom.

She instead finds Patrick at the base of the stairs, one slipper halfway off, wine from the bottle he carried pooling near his head. A thin trickle of blood spreads beside it, but it’s indistinguishable in color. The composition mirrors her mental image of Vivienne’s death. She gasps and runs to her husband, slipping slightly on the liquid, smearing her hands. She tries to wake him up, but her voice cracks into sobs. For a moment, she sees Vivienne’s face beneath her hands. She blinks, it’s gone. The ticking returns, louder, arrhythmic. She stumbles to the phone and dials 911. Her description is confused. She mentions an apartment, wineglass. She says it was an accident. The dispatcher reminds her that no one has accused her yet. She kneels next to her husband caressing his face, smearing it in blood and wine, putting her prints all over his body. Lights flash against the manor wall. Catherine arrives, she doesn’t remember calling her. Evelyn tells him he fell, she didn’t touch him. Catherine nods, unsure if she believes her. We fade to the clock, 3:25 AM.

Evening

Royce and Pierce return with new photos and evidence. They mention finding a chipped glass in the trash, but it didn’t have any blood on it. They ask Evelyn to retell her version of events. She mentions Patrick was in the study, mentions the little blood she saw, which is inconsistent with the real scene) and recalls details that actually happened on Saturday, where Vivienne died, but she mixed up the days in her mind. Catherine starts to connect the dots herself, noting Evelyn’s memory gaps and emotional cues as Vivienne is mentioned. Royce and Pierce repeat the inconsistencies and Evelyn doubles down. Hints start to appear in evidence : gloves with foreign blood on it, a handbag that doesn’t belong to either Evelyn or Patrick, faint blood that doesn’t match Patrick’s. It makes them curious, but not accusatory yet. They retire from the interrogation room to confer with Luke to go over the evidence one more time. Catherine, who connected the dots, calms Evelyn down, saying we’ll sort this out together, she’s going to leave this place and go back in her room to get some much needed sleep.

Royce receives a call from Delorme, he puts him on speaker phone so Pierce and Morgan can hear it. He reminds him of the political pressure he’s under and to keep the investigation contained. He consults his colleagues and he points out they believe someone else might have been present at the manor.

Evelyn is left alone with Catherine, staring at her reflection: guilt, confusion, and the knowledge of Vivienne’s death, but the police haven’t connected the dots. Pierce tries calling Vivienne again, but it goes straight to voicemail. A police officer tells them the lady they’re trying to reach has been found dead in her apartment. Royce has a sudden look of realization, she didn’t lie, she just moved time.