Denzel Washington and Spike Lee team up again for their adaptation of Akira Kurosawa's High and Low

By M Muzamil Shami

The upcoming reimagining of the 1963 crime classic marks the fifth time the duo has collaborated.

Denzel Washington and Spike Lee reunite once more for their fifth joint project. The acclaimed actor from "Training Day" and the renowned filmmaker behind "Do the Right Thing" are joining forces to reenvision Akira Kurosawa’s iconic 1963 crime masterpiece, "High and Low." Produced in partnership with Apple and A24, the film is scheduled to commence shooting next month, with a theatrical release preceding its debut on Apple TV+.

       Denzel Washington and Spike Lee starring in the film 'Malcolm X'. Image: EVERETT COLLECTION

The dynamic duo first teamed up for the 1990 jazz dramedy Mo’ Better Blues, featuring Washington as a confident trumpeter entangled in romantic rivalries. Their pinnacle collaboration arrived with the 1992 epic biopic Malcolm X, garnering immense praise for Lee and Washington, despite Washington losing the Oscar to Al Pacino for Scent of a Woman — a point Lee highlighted in his She’s Gotta Have It series.

Their third joint effort, He Got Game (1999), showcased Washington as a father striving to bridge the gap with his basketball prodigy son (Ray Allen). Their latest collaboration, Inside Man (2006), presented a riveting crime drama with Washington portraying an NYPD detective negotiating a tense hostage situation orchestrated by a bank robber (Clive Owen). While they haven't collaborated in nearly two decades, Lee notably cast Washington's son, John David Washington, as the lead in his acclaimed film BlacKkKlansman (2018), earning Lee his sole competitive Oscar victory thus far.

       Toshiro Mifune and Kyoko Kagawa featured in Akira Kurosawa's film 'High and Low'. Image courtesy of EVERETT COLLECTION

Similar to Inside Man, Kurosawa's High and Low also revolves around a gripping hostage negotiation. The narrative centers on a wealthy businessman, portrayed by the director's frequent collaborator Toshiro Mifune, whose chauffeur's son gets abducted by an enigmatic assailant. A significant portion of the movie unfolds within the confines of a single room in a high-rise building, where Mifune's character grapples with the decision of paying the ransom. Subsequently, the storyline transitions to investigators meticulously combing the city in pursuit of the kidnapper. Based on Ed McBain's 1959 novel King's Ransom, the film served as the inspiration for Steven Soderbergh's recent Max miniseries, Full Circle.

Washington and Lee are no strangers to remaking classic films. Washington starred in Antoine Fuqua's reinterpretation of The Magnificent Seven, itself a loose adaptation of Kurosawa's Seven Samurai, while Lee tackled Park Chan-wook's gritty crime drama Oldboy. Despite Lee's Oldboy receiving mixed reviews, it appears the filmmaker himself was dissatisfied with the final version, reportedly compelled to trim an hour from the runtime. Some critics observed that the film's credits refer to it as "a Spike Lee Film" rather than his customary "Spike Lee Joint."

       Spike Lee and Denzel Washington pose for a photo. (Image credit: Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images)

After the controversy surrounding Oldboy, Lee has predominantly directed films independently of the conventional studio framework. He collaborated with Amazon for Chi-Raq and Pass Over, and with Netflix for Da 5 Bloods and She’s Gotta Have It. Additionally, he utilized crowd-funding for the 2014 remake of Bill Gunn’s Ganja & Hess, titled Da Sweet Blood of Jesus.