‘Highest 2 Lowest’: Spike Lee Adapts an Akira Kurosawa Classic Into a New York Thriller With Riveting Human Stakes
Alci Rengifo
Spike Lee’s “Highest 2 Lowest” is a throwback to the kind of thriller where suspense builds out of genuine moral dilemmas. There is action, yet what grips are those classic questions revolving around money and the real worth of a friendship. Early festival buzz has focused on how Lee is basing the film on the classic “High and Low” by the great Akira Kurosawa. First released in 1963, it is one of Kurosawa’s best works which helped set the basic template of the kidnap thriller. The film endures because its characters are so finely sketched, with a plot that gradually reveals twists that are deep and socially relevant. Lee’s take on the story isn’t really a remake but a dynamic, original interpretation that stands fully on its own.
You need an actor of great range for this kind of story and Lee reunites with Denzel Washington so naturally here it feels like fate. Washington plays David King, the wealthy CEO of Stackin’ Hits Records in New York. Renowned as “having the best ear in the business,” King is facing a major decision concerning a sale offer for the company. He’s now planning to put together enough to buy back full control and thus prevent outsiders taking over the label and threatening its legacy. His life is materially assured with its lavishness, beautiful wife Pam (Ilfenesh Hadera) and a good-natured teen son who plays basketball, Trey (Aubrey Joseph). His chauffeur Paul Christopher (Jeffrey Wright) is also a wise confidant. Then, a chilling phone call informs King that his son has been kidnapped and a demand is set for 17.5 million in Swiss Francs. This would be the traditional beginning of a classic kidnapping thriller, but the story then takes a turn when Trey comes home and it turns out the kidnappers actually have Kyle (Elijah Wright), Paul’s son.
Such was the reveal as well in the Kurosawa film, where Japanese industrialist Kingo Gondo (Toshiro Mifune) must decide if he’s willing to give up money he desperately needs to buy back his own shoe company to save the kidnapped child of his driver. Lee and screenwriter Evan Hunter build something new out of that premise, fitting it perfectly into an environment of Black privilege. King doesn’t just see his label as a personal legacy but as a force that helped introduce and propel new Black voices. His lush apartment is decorated with artwork featuring Joe Louis, George Foreman, Muhammad Ali, and original editions of Toni Morrison. He wants to be part of that history via music. Cinematographer Matthew Libatique shoots in wide angles reminiscent of the Kurosawa original but which also emphasize the scale of King’s lifestyle. In a Spike Lee film cultural history hovers over individual lives. The brilliance of the structure is that King’s sense of himself is challenged when posed with the opportunity to prove he is willing to sacrifice for a child that is not his own.
As a key American filmmaker, Lee’s cinema has verged from classic epics about history like “Malcolm X” to those timeless moments of radical social commentary like “Do the Right Thing,” “Jungle Fever” and “Bamboozled.” “Highest 2 Lowest” is an energetic addition to his sharp dives into genre filmmaking such as “Inside Man,” mixed with the introspective drama of his great “25th Hour.” A co-production between A24 and Apple TV+, it’s another testament to how such companies are giving filmmakers needed artistic freedom. The film runs a bit lengthy at 2 hours and 13 minutes, but that’s because proper space is utilized to immerse us with these individuals before the more action-heavy suspense passages kick in. The performances channel the honesty of real people. Consider a striking moment where Paul almost begs King for the money to save Kyle, provoking King’s true frustrations to emerge of a rich man who feels others only want something from him. Washington, who is such a complete actor, subtly laces the lines with a selfishness that feels so human.
In “High and Low,” Kurosawa issued a strong critique of the Japanese class system. Kingo Gondo’s plight forces him to come down from the lush home from which he oversees the grimier city below. Spike Lee will always be a New York filmmaker. Like Martin Scorsese, he celebrates the city he loves even while issuing stinging observations, including the way someone like King can live so high above everyone else. When it’s time to make a delivery of money and possibly face the kidnapper, a riveting chase ensues that also travels through the various identities of the great city. Admirers of Lee’s work won’t be surprised he finds a way to incorporate the city’s famous National Puerto Rican Day Parade into the action and a pulse-pounding subway chase (complete with chanting Yankees fans). “Highest 2 Lowest” isn’t a travelogue, however, and the focus never strays from the wider themes that emerge as the plot thickens. Harlem rapper A$AP Rocky, in a very memorable performance, appears as Yung Felon, an up and coming rapper looking for a big break who resents how inaccessible someone like King can be. His involvement in the kidnapping works like a haunting reckoning with the tricky questions of who deserves a chance and the extremes ambition can inspire.
“Highest 2 Lowest” is not one of Lee’s upfront political commentaries in the style of “BlacKkKlansman” or “Da 5 Bloods.” He doesn’t even jab much at the music industry, at times seeming to celebrate the idea of a hitmaker like King who can stroll down the Brooklyn Bridge with his gold Beats headphones, able to spot real talent in a demo. On a level of pure craft it’s a gripping thriller in the tradition of “Ransom.” Yet, it’s far from shallow entertainment. It is a worthy heir to the Kurosawa classic by giving us microcosmic portraits of everyone involved while taking a reading of their morals. King will eventually risk much for Paul, but his hesitation is the whole point. It’s easy to proclaim undying support for a friend when times are good. A crisis can be the real test of how true a bond is. There are powerhouse performances all around this excellent piece of craftsmanship, while leaving the audience to ask itself profound questions after the end credits.
“Highest 2 Lowest” releases Aug. 15 in select theaters and begins streaming Sept. 5 on Apple TV+.