High and Low Review- By Michael Carlisle

Title: High and Low
Year: 1963
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese

Akira Kurosawa's habit of adapting European classics- such as Shakespereare's Macbeth (Throne of Blood)- earned him the Universal label as the most Western of Japanese film-makers. High and Low was not a European classic, but an American one; Ed McBain's King's Ransom (1959). It would be the only time Kurosawa would dabble in American literature, but his effort would prove to be quite successful. He could grip us with suspense in modern crime flicks as well as he could with samurai epics.

Kingo Gondo (Toshiro Mifune), the an executive of a shoe company, becomes a victim of extortion when his chauffeur's son is kidnapped and held for ransom. His resolution of this dilemma- the certain loss of the company vs. the probable loss of the child- makes for one distinct drama

Kurosawa uses this American material to produce an image of contemporary Japan. It ranges from the complacent and affluent “high” to the needy and nihilistic “low” of the film's title. This Japan is booming with a new era of economic development and prosperity, which brings along greed, uncertainty and isolation. We are not even sure Kingo Gondo is a good man, we sympathize with him because he is the lesser evil in this situation. 

The majority of the films is a careful, deliberately paced Police procedural. We are witness to the many steps it takes to catch a kidnapper. Kurosawa's flawless editing, freely cutting in and out of different spatial planes, gives the picture its great suspense. We are trapped in concentrated intensity which makes us feel like every moment is climatic. Toshiro Mifune's character also contributes to the suspense of the film; he is a proud man in an immoral and selfish world and must make an incredibly self-less decision which may harm every party in the long run. The stakes are sky high.

In conclusion, High and Low is a remarkable film that proves Kurosawa was as good a Director in the 60's as he was in the 50's. He could adapt any material and turn it into gold. Frame by frame the film is a constant play of body language and facial gestures, all leading us to an end that cannot be predicted. Praise it! 5/5