High And Low details
| Format: | 12 DVD |
|---|---|
| Starring: | Kyoko Kagawa, Toshiro Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai |
| Director: | Akira Kurosawa |
| Genres: | Thriller - Action/Adventure, World Cinema - Japanese, Russian |
| Studio: | BFI VIDEO |
| Name | Discs | |
|---|---|---|
High And Low |
12 Feature |
DVD Information
| Run time: | 2 hours 23 minutes |
|---|---|
| Rental release: | 28 Mar 2005 |
| Main languages: | Japanese |
| Subtitles: | English |
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Most helpful review
Sublime and Masterful
By Merlin from London , 15 Feb 2006[Highly rated reviewer]
My parents awoke me when I was seven to watch the Seven Samurai on TV. I didn't make school the next day but I could think of nothing else for weeks. To this day it remains my favorite film for many reasons. I made a point of trying to see every film that Kurosawa has made and High and Low is no exception as to it's brilliance.
The film starts slowly but with wonderful set pieces and enigmatic charcters grips you. Gondo is a major shareholder in a shoe company but his colleagues want to oust him. He decides to put everything on the line and mortgage his house to retain the majority shareholding and oust his fiesty colleagues. Just when things are going to plan his son is kidnapped and held for ransom. Although it isn't his son, it's his chauffeurs son. A dilemma ensues. What will he do.
High and Low is an intelligent and beautiful film and one of Kurosawa's most clever. Kurosawa ultimately understood his art far more than almost any other filmmaker living or dead. He was truly the master. Wonderful sixties sets and great acting lead to a fantastic night in front of the tele.
Watch this wearing your finest loafers.- Was this review helpful to you?
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(11)A personal Kurosawa favourite
By brokenking (255 reviews) from Bristol , 09 Apr 2010While the big name films for Kurosawa were Seven Samurai and Yojimbo, I have to admit this is a personal favourite now. I didn't know anything about it prior to renting the title and was very pleasantly surprised.
It is estentially a police procedural about a kidnapping/blackmail with many scenes centred around the victim who has to pay up. Reading that doesn't sound very exciting but its great to see the police put their investigation piece by piece, watching the victim put his life back together as the kdinapper ruins him financially. It might lack the big battles of his other works but Akira put in some great acting it their stead.- Was this review helpful to you?
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A Film of Two Halves.
By a customer from Harlow , 31 Dec 2008High and Low is a real curiosity. I was surprised to see Japanese cinema so grittily exploring the underworld and the film reminded me of some of Welles’s attempts to horrify in the late 50s. Yet, throughout remains the staunchly heroic man of integrity, played by Mifune, the irresistible hero - a modern setting for a samurai in nature.
The first half is taut and its single-room setting conveys a power not unreminiscient of Rope. The second is much more traditional cop-fare, with real thrills and a nice line in humour. Only the last few minutes remind us that this was a sixties film (e.g. they let the film down with a hammy conclusion and gestures towards the drug culture). Still, I recommend it to you – Kurosawa was peerless and remains so.- Was this review helpful to you?
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Kidnapper caper comes a cropper
By Charles Brickley from Andover, Hampshire England , 03 Mar 2008Yet another Kurosawa masterpiece starring the magnificent Mifune which manages to deal with business powerplays, crime, loyalty, honour and drama in what could have been just another cop story.
Time is spent setting up the story as well as dealing with the decision that Mifune's character has to make when he is bargaining his hard earned fortune for the life of his chauffer's son who was mistakenly kidnapped instead of his own lad.
Yes, it's in black and white again, but the photography is still great and the plot eventually picks up the pace once the police get in on the act.
If you enjoy Akira Kurosawa's work then you will not be disappointed by this little gem, based upon an American story, but told as only the Japanese can.
Well worth the money!- Was this review helpful to you?
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Last review kinda spoilt the film..
By a customer from Glasgow, Scotland , 03 Aug 2007I was going to get this and made the mistake of reading the review, gives abit too much away regarding plot twist- Was this review helpful to you?
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heaven and hell
By dom bradley from lancs , 13 Jun 2006the actual translation of kurosawa's detective thriller (based on an ed mcbain novel) is 'heaven & hell',reflecting the flaw of much of kurosawa and japanese cinema,that of over sentimentality and lack of narrative subtlety.A film in two parts as the title might suggest,the first half ('high') reminiscent of hitchcock's 'rope' in both setting (a room overlooking a city) and treatment (play like with long takes) concerns the kidnapping of a child and the family/police's phone conversations with the kidnapper,the 2nd part ('low') follows the pursuit of the kidnapper through the city's 'underbelly'.Though overlong,it is brilliantly filmed and acted,and any director who opens a film with a group of men discussing shoes has confidence in his abilities as a film maker.What lets this film down like so many other japanese films is its crude sentimentality and ill judged 'social comment' which often seems superficial and insincere...A brilliantly made,intelligent but overlong detective thriller.- Was this review helpful to you?
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