High and Low (The Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray]

Fascinating, well done, procedural (current for the times). A step away from the period films that the director is normally associated with.

While I generally view Kurosawa's original Stray Dog as another in long line of his genre setting triumphs, High And Low is his masterpiece of the crime genre. High and Low was made in the middle of his career before Kurosawa's decline when his failure with Dodeskaden and getting kicked off of Tora, Tora, Tora caused him to go on hiatus for nearly ten years and drove him to attempt suicide. Thankfully Russia came along with a chance to adapt Dersu Uzala a film I wish was given the respectable double dip that Criterion is doing with their earlier releases.I discovered High and Low early in my exploration of Kurosawa mainly overlooking it because it wasn't a samurai period film something I thought He had excelled in and only that. It happened by chance that I borrowed the orginal Criterion disc from a friend at work and quickly became engorged in any film made by the master. This film has the earmarks of Kurosawa film with social commentary, great characters, amazing black and white photography (the liner for the dvd makes mentions of lighting on the killers mirrored sunglasses during the finale), and scenes that are almost acted without any dialogue. Plus its just a great damn thriller.High and Low was adapted from a 87th precinct novel from the late Ed McBain (Evan Hunter). It transplants the story from America to Yokohama in the middle of the summer. As the film begins shoe maker executive Gondo is having a meeting with subordinates where he outlines his plans to take over the company. The others are flummoxed as they want to create flimmsier shoes at cheaper prices and plan ..ping Gondo. Things come to a head when Gondo gets a phone call from a man who says He's kidnapped his son who was recently playing with the chauffers son around the house. Unfortunately his son comes in and as it turns out the chauffers son has been the one kidnapped. The Kidnapper discovers this also but won't budge on the ransom demand so Gondo is set up with a moral choice. He calls the cops despite the danger it poses but trys whatever He can to figure out a way not to pay the ransom.The cops arrive and then begins the first half of the film as a plan is devised to get back both the boy and the money. The second half of the film involves the police investigation trying to find out who the kidnapper is ending with a chase through the city in the night through back alleys and bars filled with foreigners all with as little dialogue as possible depending mainly on the emotions of the actors to sell the intensity. While the first half is more character driven the last half of the film is more procedural which of course is what appealed to me more.Being the fan that I am the only way to describe High and Low would be to use the word impeccable. Its not the most loved Kurosawa film (something I'd disagree with) but it has the hallmarks of greatness in my opinion. While I love the procedural half of the film, the first set only in the Gondo house is intense thanks to the acting and directing talent. One of the great things that I've always loved about Kurosawa is his use of long takes and this helps build the intensity of the scenes as the camera flows around the living room watching the characters. On the acting side you have the two of Kurosawa's main group. Toshiro Mifune is always able to play intensity with bravado and flair but as the film progresses you can see him begining to falter in his plans not to pay the ransom demand. At the end He's given up everything He gained, all his riches gone until He's back to mowing his own lawn in one of the famous images of the film like He's trying to hold back the inevitable. The second actor is Tatsuya Nakadai as Chief Detective Tokoda. Nakadai worked on the last of Kurosawa's masterpieces (being Kagemusha and Ran) and this was a great almost simple performance. Tokoda heading up the investigation isn't a renegade cop character mostly simply dressed and handsome. But Nakadai has a commanding presence that demands you to watch him. I can't really describe what makes Nakadai Mifune's perfect accomplice in the film.In the end its a perfect film in my mind, one of the few I wouldn't hesitate to brand it as such.I was speaking on my original experience with the film which was Criterions orignal release. Around the time Criterion double dipped Seven Samurai and gave it the treatment it deserved I hoped they'd do the same for High and Low as the picture on the original disc was slightly cropped at the sides. On this set they've thankfully corrected that issue while adding some great features like a commentary from Stephen Prince and more of the It Is Wonderful to Create series that they've included on almost all of their Kurosawa releases. Its strange that original Criterion is still listed for sale as this is the only set worth buying in my opinion.

The plot is simple and straightforward, but its meaning and the acting look similarly easy only if one does not pause to think about how deep and complex it is, and how difficult it is for actors to portray lives so believably. How apt! the script, directing, cinematography, music, sound effects, locations, set designs and editing are. Everything is perfect, as is characteristic of all of the great director’s works.Watch and enjoy! The English subtitles are large and very readable. You’ll be especially impressed by Toshiro Mifune’s ability to effectively show the character changes the shoe factory industrialist he portrays undergoes. The film was released over 60 years ago, but its themes and formatting is very modern … or, better put, eternal. Most of us lose a significant part of our freedom at work. We trade something of ourselves for our paychecks. Sometimes we trade a lot for very little in return. Maybe we might decline to . trade our selves. Maybe we could all be a little more heroic, even if we are not bosses like the movie’s industrialist. For instance, if we make shoes as the workers in this movie do, they should fit, be attractive, be sturdy and last a long time. Workers should demand pride, not just a paycheck. They might value life - their lives & other’s lives - above all else, as the industrialist does.

Top Japanese actors Toshiro Mifune and Tatsuya Nakadai star in this detective tale of a mistaken kidnapping. Kurosawa's immaculate direction is aided by powerful performances, especially from Mifune who portrays of a modern businessman faced with the moral dilemma of whether to risk destroying his business to ransom an employee's child, mistakenly kidnapped in place of the businessman's son. Kurosawa deftly navigates social inequalities in 1960's Japan where the rich literally live on a hill looking down into the slums below. This is a movie that rewards repeated viewings.

Highly recommend this film and the Criterion Collection Edition of this film.

高度経済成長期に入った頃の日本社会に隠された社会格差を、富豪の児童誘拐事件を題材にとって描いた作品。特に犯人役としてこの作品でデビューした山崎努がラストで見せたシーンの迫力は有名。その後、『日本経済新聞』に連載された「私の履歴書」の中で、ご本人は、「恥ずかしくてこのシーンを直視できない」と語っておられましたが、どうして素晴らしい、不朽の名演技だと思います。同時に私は、それまでの黒澤作品では、常に三船敏郎の引き立て役だった仲代達也が、遂に三船を食った演技を見せていることに感銘を受けました。黒沢現代劇の傑作だと思います。

Dieser Film (1963) ist der letzte von 4 Filmen Kurosawas, die sich im weitesten Sinne als Kriminalfilme beschreiben lassen. Neben dem Samurai-Abenteuer hat der Weltklasse-Regisseur auch dieses Genre bedient. Es begann 1948 mit dem 'Engel der Verlorenen', einem eindringlichen Gangsterdrama, dem später der Polizei-Thriller 'Stray Dog' (1949) und die Story über Gier und Korruption 'The Bad Sleep Well' (1960) folgten. Gemeinsam ist allen Filmen der Hauptdarsteller Toshirô Mifune und der weitere Darsteller Takashi Shimura, der hier allerdings nur eine unbedeutende Nebenrolle spielt. Nur der erste Film wurde deutsch synchronisiert, während 'High and Low' zumindest mit deutschen (und französischen) Untertiteln erhältlich ist - leider mit etlichen kleinen Lücken.'High and Low' ist die Story einer Kindesentführung. Der Grossaktionär und Produktionsleiter einer Schuhfabrik Gondo (Mifune) möchte den Qualitätsstandard seiner Produkte vor den Interessen anderer Aktionäre retten und steht kurz davor, sich die entscheidenden Aktien für die Stimmenmehrheit zu kaufen. Da wird scheinbar sein Sohn entführt und ein extrem hohes Lösegeld verlangt. Der Sohn findet sich aber wieder ein und es stellt sich heraus, dass aus Versehen der Spielkamerad seines Sohnes, der der Sohn seines Chaufeurs ist, entführt worden ist. Da von der Aktienmehrheit der Job Gondos (und der Lebensstandard der Familie) abhängt, will Gondo nun zunächst nicht mehr zahlen, wird aber von seiner Umgebung (zu der jetzt auch die alarmierte Polizei gehört) dazu überredet. - Aus einem Zug heraus wird das Lösegeld in einem Aktenkoffer aus dem Fenster geworfen und das entführte Kind kommt frei. Der zweite Teil des Films zeigt routiniert die Methoden der Polizei zur Ermittlung des Täters. In einem spannenden Showdown wird der Täter gefasst - zum Schluss steht er seinem Opfer Gonzo gegenüber.Letzteres erinnert an den Film 'Stray Dog', wo sich auch am Schluss Opfer (der Polizist) und Täter gegenüberstehen. Der Polizist wurde dem getriebenen Räuber immer ähnlicher und erkannte sich in ihm. Dies gelingt hier dem Opfer nur bedingt, schon weil er den Hass des Opfers nicht teilen kann. Denn beide verbindet hauptsächlich der Neid, den der Täter Gonzo gegenüber hegt. Er lebt im Talkessel der Stadt (der 'Hölle') und blickt ständig auf den Hügel ('Himmel'), auf dem das recht protzig wirkende Anwesen Gonzos steht (mit Klimaanlage, die Sommer wie Winter erträglich macht). Der Neid hat den Hass des Entführers motiviert. Bei der Begegnung möchte er sich als Sieger verkaufen, der sich von seinem Todes-Urteil nicht beeindrucken lässt. Das misslingt. - Enttarnt wird der Täter durch ein Farbtüpfelchen in diesem Schwarzweissfilm: Die präparierte Aktentasche, in dem das Geld steckte, sondert beim Verbrennen gelbroten Rauch ab. Ein sehr wirkungsvoller Effekt, den Kurosawa sich für die Aufdeckung des Täters erdacht hat.

inspirés des films noirs hollywoodiens.Kurosawa en a compris toutes les ficelles.Son acteur fétiche, Toshiro Mifune, est méconnaissable d'un film à l'autre.Il était ce vagabond meurtrier (et dérangé) dans Rashomon,Lion d'Or à Venise en 1954,mais il est à sa guise un chefd'entreprise très digne (ici), un intriguant magnifique dans "Les Salauds dorment en paix",ou un malfrat tuberculeux qui ne se laisse pas soigner("Chien enragé" adaptation de Tchékhov).Il faut le voir dans L IDIOT de Kurosawa, adapté de Dostoïevski.

Nothing quite prepares you for this carefully researched, tightly scripted, superbly acted and very unusual Japanese crime thriller. It shows all of the stage managed filming for which Kurasawa and other Japanese directors were so famous and which so many Western films lack and I feel this is the films strength. Mifune plays out of type as a hard ambitious businessman who sees all of his dreams collapsing before him. The cops are simply brilliant and the strict social stereotyping of Japanese society is laid bare. A must for Mifune fans.