HIGHEST 2 LOWEST – Review

Even though the sweltering temps haven’t abated, it seems that the 2025 Summer movie season is nearing an end with the return of one of the most acclaimed filmmakers working today. Yes, this is an award contender premiering in August. Oh, and this director is “doubling down” with a “re-working” of a film from one of the true “masters of international cinema”. And did I tell you that this is the fifth collaboration between the filmmaker and a two-time Oscar-winning actor? It all appears to get all the “boxes checked” for the big nominations and the critics’ lists. So, with this elite “pedigree”, just how does HIGHEST 2 LOWEST really “stack up” (is it more the latter than the former)?

In the story’s opening moments, we’re whisked around and about the gleaming towers of Manhattan. On the balcony of one of them is a man barking into a cell phone. Speaking of “stack”, he is David King (Denzel Washington), chief executive and co-founder of the music label “Stackin’ Hits”, and he’s putting all his “ducks in a row” in this life-changing “deal”. But first, there are family obligations. His beautiful wife Pam (Iifenesh Hadera) needs this year’s contribution to a local charity. Her “radar” goes on as David suggests just half the usual “check”, for now. Then it’s on to their teenage son, Trey (Aubrey Joseph), who goes with dad to his elite basketball camp (one of the coaches is Rick Fox). There, Trey meets with his BFF Kyle (Elijah Wright), who happens to be the son of David’s personal chauffeur, Paul Christopher (Jeffrey Wright). He’s late because he’s gathering the proper papers for the big business “play”. After “touching base” with other company execs, David returns to his lush penthouse apartment to share the big news with Pam. He’s taken out loans, set up several accounts, and called in lots of favors in an attempt to acquire sole ownership of his recording empire. As she processes this news, David takes another call, thinking it’s a possible investor. He’s stunned when the unknown caller informs him that he’s grabbed Trey, and ransom instructions will soon follow. The police are called, while Paul realizes that his son Kyle hasn’t returned yet and isn’t picking up his calls. As the NYPD set up a command center in the dining room, another call occurs. The voice informs David to put together over 17 million dollars in Swiss currency, with drop-off details to come. David assures Pam that he will pay, while a new development has the police scurrying. A patrol car has picked up Trey and is bringing him home. He tells the stunned group that Kyle was grabbed instead. When David gets a new call from the criminal, he boasts that his son is safe, that he has Paul’s son. Nonetheless, the “voice” still insists on the ransom money; otherwise, he’ll murder Kyle. Paul doesn’t have the funds, while David balks at paying, since it would almost wipe out the needed capital for his company’s takeover. Will he make this huge sacrifice for his old friend’s boy? His decision plunges the affluent David into the seedy, crime-ridden underbelly of the Big Apple…

In case we all needed to be reminded of true movie star charisma, Mr. Washington easily delivers that quality from that slow tracking drone shot in the film’s opening minutes to the final fade-out. As King contemplates his “power move”, Washington displays a jovial swagger as he prepares for that day. When it takes that awful turn in the evening hours, we see the darkness consume him as he strains to keep control as his life crumbles. And as a deadly decision weighs on in shoulders, Washington allows us a glimpse of King’s vulnerability as the world seems to turn against him. He then taps into all those qualities in the rousing finale, when David dives into the abyss to demand justice. He’s got a great rapport with the stunning Hadera, who makes the perfect life partner for David. She’s his sounding board and fierce beacon of empathy. They’re a true power couple, though the more volatile pairing is with the always wonderful Wright as Paul. He’s been beaten down by life after losing his wife and spending too many years in the system. Wright gives him an inspiring dignity, pushing back at the police who suspect him (such “side-eye”), while struggling against despair as his beloved son is taken from him. Kudos are also due to the main law-enforcement trio of John Douglas Thompson, LaChanze, and the surly, snarky Dean Winter (“Mayhem” in a superb TV ad series). The biggest “find” may be the fiery performance of rapper A$AP Rocky as fledgling “wannabe” Yung Felon. He’s got an unpredictable energy that gives Washington a chance to reveal another facet to King.

The entire cast is stellar, guided by an elder cinema statesman who is still a “firebrand” after nearly 40 years of films, Spike Lee. He, along with screenwriter Evan Hunter, has put a remarkable spin on a classic crime film from 1963 by Akira Kurosawa, HIGH AND LOW, which he adapted from the novel by Ed McBain, “King’s Ransom”. They’ve taken most of that story’s structure and used it as a reflection on current society, from hip hop culture to the smothering, all-surrounding online community. Lee is in full command as he makes use of a few of his stylistic tropes (the “slow-rolling close-up” is here), an eclectic music soundtrack (the opening song is a strange stunner), and background images that reflect and comment on the characters. Plus, he and cinematographer Matthew Libatique give us a very vibrant NYC, more vivid than most recent flicks. What may surprise most filmgoers is the humor that finds its way into a dark tale of teen kidnapping, while not taking away the “high stakes” involved in the terrible crime. It’s tough stuff, for sure, but Lee sprinkles in lots of levity, even as we worry about the fate of the Kings and the Christophers. For fans of the “source” film, Lee takes a sharp “left” from that story’s third act, which gives the drama and social commentary an added heft. My only problem is the use of the musical score as a smothering “blanket” for many of the pivotal plot sequences, hammering in the emotional “stakes”. It’s a minor quibble with such a thought-provoking and entertaining film, proving that there’s still lots of juice and enjoyment in the fifth collaboration of Lee and Washington. Now they’re truly “stackin’ the hits” with the compelling HIGHEST 2 LOWEST.

3.5 Out of 4

HIGHEST 2 LOWEST is now playing in theatres everywhere