If this film isn’t in your list yet, time to add it in now. And if this film is already in your list but you haven’t checked it, go watch it now.
High and Low, directed by one of the greatest filmmaker of all time, Akira Kurosawa, is a movie about A shoe executive named Gondo, who is facing a wrecking choice when kidnappers mistakenly seize his chauffer’s son, but demand the ransom anyway. It is full of suspense from beginning to end, makes it very hard not to be glued at your screen when watching. As title mentioned, this should be a compass for filmmaking as it is just such a masterclass from every single aspect for a movie, top to bottom.
From the beginning, this film serves you the perfect and flawless setting. The location, the characters, the situation, what’s at stake, so on and so forth. Each character, one by one, is introduced in such a unique way, that we get to know who they are and what they do with not much confusion or loss. From Gondo, to his wife, to his son, his chauffer, his chauffer’s son, the police, even the kidnappers whom we later find out, are performed at the highest quality that it truly delivered the story the way that it was supposed to. All actors are on their A+ games and when you watch this film, you will not have any doubts about it.
Cinematography wise, is another 10/10 piece of art. Asakazu Nakai and Takao Saito as cinematographers, together with director Akira Kurosawa, managed to capture this film so beautifully, and precisely choreographed, that totally sends the film into another level. My personal favorite aspect of the cinematography is the camera movement. A great cinematography not only can capture the subjects, but it captures feelings, emotions, and tense also. This film did just that. Other than the camera movement, you will notice that scenes have that one-shot style, where it’s long and focuses on following the characters. This is the absolute move for this kind of story. It creates desperation, makes you feel trapped, both with space, and with time. Last part of this film’s cinematography that I wanted to mention is the blocking. Perfectly done. But if you’ve seen some other Kurosawa’s work, you are not having second thoughts about it.
Lastly, in terms of the plot development and along with character development, this is one of the best I’ve seen. The storylines, from Gondo’s ambition for National Shoes, to his early selfishness about the ransom, to the guilt of the chauffer and all of the police journey catching the bad guy, these are all stitched so smoothly, makes the experience of watching and going through this film even more satisfying.
At the end, all I will say is if you have not watched it, what are you waiting for?
