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5d ago

Spike Lee’s Highest 2 Lowest Earns Praise for Visual Style and Denzel Washington’s Performance

Reimagining Kurosawa’s High and Low as a New York music-industry thriller, the film will stream on Apple TV+ on September 5.

Highest 2 Lowest
Denzel Washington and Ilfenesh Hadera in director Spike Lee’s “Highest 2 Lowest.” (A24)
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Overview

  • Highest 2 Lowest updates the 1963 Kurosawa drama High and Low by shifting its kidnapping plot to the modern music business in New York City.
  • The film premiered at Cannes in May and opened in limited U.S. theaters in mid-August ahead of its Apple TV+ debut.
  • Critics have lauded Spike Lee’s direction, Matthew Libatique’s grainy handheld cinematography and the set design drawn from Lee’s personal art collection.
  • Denzel Washington’s turn as music mogul David King has been praised for its controlled intensity despite moments that reveal his character’s physical limits.
  • Reviews noted that the central moral dilemma remains under-explored, celebrity cameos can be distracting and A$AP Rocky’s supporting performance is uneven.