Recently remade by Spike Lee (Highest to Lowest), Kurosawa’s version tells the story of Japanese businessman Kingo Gondo (the fabulous Toshiro Mifune) struggling for control of the major shoe company at which he is a board member. He plans a leveraged buyout of the company with his life savings, when a kidnapper mistakenly abducts his chauffeur’s son to ransom him for 30 million yen. He faces the anguishing decision between saving the life of the boy and financial ruin.
The blocking and the choreography are extraordinary and Bascara emphasizes this and the intense emotion portrayed by choosing key scenes and simplifying the background into solid colors.
This is what Bascara says about the pictures:
“I made these drawings while watching High & Low for the first time at home in 2021 when NYC was in lockdown. I was immediately drawn to the way the actors were staged, as well as the sets and wardrobes, and had to get it down on paper. Collage with painted paper was a quick way to create the shapes and play around with composition. I focused on images that showed dynamics between characters and Gondo’s inner conflicts.
By the way I finally saw High & Low in theaters recently, it was a unique experience to see it with an audience.”
High and Low is available to stream, but even better keep an eye on Film Forum’s calendar—they screen it regularly.
—CNQ
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see more of James Bascara’s work here