High and Low- Criterion Collection

If all Akira Kurasawas name brings to mind is epic samurai cinema you owe it to yourself to see Ikuru, but also the much earlier noirish Stray Dog and High and Low. As he did with any genre he worked in Kurasawa makes the most of the conventions associated with noir but he never loses sight of the society he’s making film’s about or the time he’s setting them in. This film concerns a wealthy Japanese industrialist whose son is kidnapped and held for ransom. Instead of aceding to the demands the father launches a campaign to get his son back. If the plot sounds familiar you’re probably thinking of Ransom starring Mel Gibson and directed by Ron Howard. Personally I don’t like Howard much as a dirctor but Ransom does work as a straightforward suspense action thriller. But in no way does it hold a candle to Kurasawas character driven, class aware, deconstruction of postwar Japanese society.

This is definitely a step up from the single disc edition of a while back. New restored high-definition digital transfer with newly restored original four-track surround soundNew audio commentary by Akira Kurosawa scholar Stephen PrinceA 37-minute documentary on the making of High and Low created as part of the Toho Masterworks series Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to CreateRare archival interview with Toshiro MifuneNew video interview with actor Tsutomu Yamazaki who plays the kidnapperTheatrical trailers from Japan and the U.S.New and improved English subtitletranslation as well as a booklet featuring a new essay by critic Geoffrey O'Brien and a reprinted essay by Japanese film scholar Donald Richie.