Directed by Spike Lee (Da 5 Bloods) — Screenplay by Alan Fox.
With Apple TV+’s Highest 2 Lowest, American filmmaker Spike Lee has made his second remake, or reinterpretation, of an East Asian classic in the last twelve years. The last time Lee did this was with 2013‘s Oldboy, a remake of the Park Chan-wook South Korean action thriller classic. Lee’s 2013 film was largely dismissed and criticized as an inferior work, but, at least initially, his second go-around in recent years with an East Asian classic, Akira Kurosawa’s High and Low, has been met more warmly by critics, even if it isn’t perceived as a slam dunk or an improvement. In my opinion, though, Spike Lee’s attempt at a Kurosawa remake is a disappointment. Although I love several of the master American filmmaker’s earlier works, I found his latest film to be difficult to connect with, largely due to quirks and performances that work against the film.
Spike Lee’s reimagined version of High and Low, titled Highest 2 Lowest, follows David King, a renowned music mogul and record label executive, who, while trying to orchestrate a potentially career-defining ownership, finds out that his son has been kidnapped. The anonymous caller demands $17.5 million in Swiss 1,000-franc notes, but King’s willingness to even entertain the idea of paying the ransom changes drastically when it is revealed that it isn’t his son who has been kidnapped, but, in actuality, the son of King’s chauffeur and trusted confidant.
Let’s start with what works about this film, and, perhaps predictably, it starts with Denzel Washington. Washington has long been Spike Lee’s best performer, and, in moments, he elevates this film to ambitious heights. Alongside Jeffrey Wright, Denzel is acting circles around the rest of the cast. There are moments when the script is aiming for something ambitious, and yet is outwardly goofy, especially towards the end, but Denzel manages to sell it in a way that makes his character feel like a living, breathing person rather than a character in a mixed bag type of script. I’ll also admit that, even though I have issues with the writing, there are moments when it reaches for a kind of theatrical morality play that I kind of enjoy, with the best example of this being when the main character’s son says something along the lines of “the man with the best ears in the business has the coldest heart.” As a side note, I’ll add that I also liked the scenes when Washington was seen fighting back against AI in art.
Those good elements, at least to me, lift this film up, but only to a point. I have to be honest with myself and say that so many things about the rest of the film hold it back from being what I think Spike Lee had envisioned it to be. A Kurosawa classic seen through the lens of Spike Lee sounds exciting, but so many things here distract from that. For me, it starts with the performances. Sure, there are moments when actors are deliberately screaming to the camera or trying to be campy, but there are also several performers here that appear melodramatic and unconvincing in ways that make the film feel unsteady. It also doesn’t help that the musical score from Howard Drossin drowns you in this generic and manipulative music that only rarely lets up. The musical score is just, again and again, needlessly over the top and bafflingly put to use in a way that takes you away from the film. It is one of the quirks of the film that really makes you scratch your head in disbelief, with a certain wipe transition of a ‘PNG logo’ being another example. These elements make the film sometimes feel unfinished or sloppy.
Ultimately, Spike Lee‘s Highest 2 Lowest did not materialize into the kind of film that I think could win over audiences far and wide. Although it certainly does have thriller elements that are gripping, Lee has also infused the film with so many quirks that make it a hard pill to swallow. While Denzel Washington and Jeffrey Wright do light up the screen on occasion with invigorating performances, in between those scenes, you’re met with those aforementioned transitions, a frustrating score, and supporting character performances that bring the film down. I have to say, as someone who normally really appreciates Spike Lee’s films and his style, that I was somewhat disappointed.
5.9 out of 10
– Review written by Jeffrey Rex Bertelsen.
I'm Jeffrey Rex 