Yep. I finally watched it and am ready to conclude this Film Noir marathon. It's been a pretty fun ride, with only one film that I wouldn't recommend to people (Kiss Me Deadly). The last film is High and Low, directed in 1960 by Akira Kurosawa. Below is my review and then my pick for the best, must-see, Film Noirs of the marathon.
High and Low
Clocking in at 2 1/2 hours, High and Low can more accurately be described as two movies. The first centers around wealthy business man Gondo who, when poised to take over the companies he's worked at for years, has his son kidnapped. Well, not his son actually (as the kidnappers soon learn) but his chauffeur's son. The kidnapper's however still want him to pay the 30 million ransom to save the boy. This leaves Gando in an interesting position — pay the ransom and lose his job, social standing, and way of life or don't pay the ransom and let the boy die. OK, I know what you're all thinking. "Sounds weighty. Sounds heavy handed. Sounds like material for Kevin Costner's next directorial outing."
However, High and Low doesn't go down that road. It focuses instead on the character's actions, movements, and the small seemingly insignificant things that people do when under such stress. As such, it becomes an acute but low-key character study instead of a deep, somber meditation on good and evil (which would be boring).
The second part of the film details the police tracking and building a case against the kidnappers. Both parts have their own climaxes and endings, so the effect is something like watching a two volume film back to back.
Of the two, the first is more intriguing and nuanced whereas the second is a bit more of a straightforward police movie, albeit with Kurosawa touches. Each frame in the film is composed with intricate skill, and the acting is also very good. The actors can seem stiff in the beginning, but after you start slipping into the rhythm of everything the performances improve greatly.
Article comments
1 - Ty
Did you see "Brick" as part of your Film Noir Marathon?
Not only is it the best movie period of 2006, pretty good as far as film noir goes...
2 - Cameron Graham
Ty, I didn't watch "Brick" as part of the marathon but it is high up on my Netflix cue so I'll most likely get to see it next weekend.
I didn't include movies like "Brick" simply because I wanted to stick to older Noirs made during the time when Film Noir's were very (although briefly) popular or in the case of "High and Low", right outside of that time period.
Thanks for the suggestion and I looked forward to watching "Brick".