Long-time collaborators Spike Lee and Denzel Washington are no strangers to box office hits, so it’s no surprise that they will continue to set their sights high. The pair’s next project, Highest 2 Lowest, certainly has some big shoes to fill as a loose remake of beloved classic High and Low, from famed Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa, with a teaser trailer presenting a montage of quick cuts and images of the Brooklyn Bridge.
“There’s more to life than just making money. It’s integrity. There’s what you stand for. It’s what you actually believe in. Do you believe in yourself? Do you believe you’ll be successful? The hard times will come from the good times. The hard times will come from success. The hard times will come from the money. And the mayhem follows,” says the voice of Washington’s character. “So can you handle the mayhem? Can you handle the money? Can you handle the success? Can you handle the failure? Can you handle the lovers? Can you handle the memes? Can you handle everything that there is in between? That’s the question I have for you: Can you handle it? All money ain’t good money.”
In the crime thriller, the Malcolm X star plays a powerful music mogul, known for having the “best ears in the business”, who’s targeted in a ransom plot that puts him in a life-or-death moral dilemma. Joining him on the cast list are rappers A$AP Rocky and Ice Spice, Jeffrey Wright (Casino Royale, The Last of Us 2), Ilfenesh Hadera (Baywatch, 2013’s Oldboy), and more.
The A24-produced and Apple-backed film marks the fifth collaboration between Lee and Washington, and their first in nearly 20 years. The original 1963 feature follows a businessman, portrayed by Kurosawa regular Toshiro Mifune, deciding whether to use his wealth to further his career or save a child’s life. Both movies are reinterpretations of Ed McBain’s novel “The King’s Ransom,” part of the author’s “87th Precinct” series of police procedural novels and short stories.
Highest 2 Lowest will be released in theatres on 22 August.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
Kevin Low
