High and Low (1963)

Directed by Akira Kurosawa. Starring Tatsuya Nakadai, Toshirô Mifune, Yutaka Sada, Tatsuya Mihashi, Kenjiro Ishiyama, Kyôko Kagawa, Isao Kimura, Takeshi Katô, Tsutomu Yamazaki.

Well-to-do business executive Mifune gets contacted by a criminal who has kidnapped his son and is demanding a sizable ransom, though it turns out to be the wrong child—it’s actually the son of Mifune’s chauffeur (Sada). Liberally based off an Ed McBain crime novel, this is essentially two noir-ish stories in one (with overlap); first, a class-conscious kidnapping thriller showing the businessman’s hesitation and the efforts to recover the stolen child, followed by a down-and-dirty detective story detailing lead investigator Nakadai’s pursuit in finding and capturing the fiend. Until the denouement, a shade superficial and brittle by Kurosawa’s high (and never low) standards, but still gripping and suspenseful most of the way, with some fine examples of stark black & white photography (especially inside the drug den) and a memorable use of color in one sequence. The final scene ranks among the director’s most affecting moments.

85/100