Based on KING'S RANSOM, a crime novel by Ed McBain, HIGH AND LOW stars Toshirô Mifune as Kingo Gondo, a wealthy, hardworking businessman. As Gondo plans a coup that will secure his position as the head of his Yokohama shoe company, he is contacted by a criminal who informs him that he's kidnapped his son. The crook demands a huge ransom for the boy's return--an amount that has taken Gondo 30 years of labor to amass. As the worried industrialist prepares to pay the ransom, he discovers that his son is safe at home--the kidnapper has mistakenly snatched his chauffeur's son. The question quickly becomes: Does Gondo abandon his plans to pay off the criminal, or does he do the honorable thing and help save his driver's child? This moral dilemma drives Akira Kurosawa's intelligent, detailed thriller that features Mifune in a thoughtful, nuanced performance as a man forced to make a startlingly difficult decision.

The first half of Kurosawa's film takes place high upon Gondo's hilltop home, in scenes shot almost entirely in his spacious living room. The second half, however, is largely set in the lowly, cramped confines of the city where the kidnapper hides from the police investigation led by the determined Inspector Tokura (Tatsuya Nakadai). The film's excellent cast also includes Kurosawa regulars Kyôko Kagawa, Takashi Shimura, and Susumu Fujita. With its bleak backdrop of 1960s industrial Yokohama, HIGH AND LOW stands as one of the finest examples of Japanese film noir, lensed through the meticulous vision of a master filmmaker.

A kidnapper with a desire to topple the wealthiest man he can find sets out to snatch the son of the rich owner of a shoe company, but nabs his chauffeur's kid by mistake. Gondo (Toshirô Mifune), the shoe magnate, must then decide whether to pay the ransom and face financial ruin, or let the boy die. Meanwhile, police are on the kidnapper's trail.

Theatrical release: March 1, 1963.

Shot in and around Yokohama, Japan, and at Toho Studios.

HIGH AND LOW is one of Toshirô Mifune's final collaborations with Akira Kurosawa.
The film also features Susumu Fujita's last appearance in a Kurosawa film. The actor stars in many of the director's movies, including THE HIDDEN FORTRESS and earlier productions such as SANSHIRO SUGATA and THE MEN WHO TREAD ON THE TIGER'S TAIL.

This was the first major screen role for Tsutomu Yamazaki, who went on to appear in other films such as Juzo Itami's TAMPOPO and Kurosawa's KAGEMUSHA.

Excerpt: "I just want to make good shoes."--Kingo Gondo (Toshirô Mifune) to his wife, Reiko (Kyôko Kagawa)

"Why are you so convinced that it is right that we hate each other?"--Gondo to Ginjiro Takeuchi (Tsutomu Yamazaki)
"I don't know. I'm not interested in self-analysis."--Takeuchi

"It's interesting to make fortunate men unfortunate."--Takeuchi

DVD Features:

Keep Case
2-Disc Set
Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35
Audio:
Dolby Digital 1.0 - Japanese
Subtitles - English - Optional
Additional Release Material:
Audio Commentary - 1. Akira Kurosawa, Director
2. Stephen Prince, Scholar
Documentary - The Making of HIGH AND LOW - Toho Masterworks Series
AKIRA KUROSAWA: IT'S WONDERFUL TO CREATE
Interview - 1. Toshiro Mifune, Actor
2. Tsutomu Yamazaki, Actor
Trailers - Japan and U.S. Theatrical Trailers
Additional Product:
Booklet - Essays - 1. Geoffrey O'Brien, Critic
2. Donald Richie, Japanese Film Scholar

Distributor Notes: Toshiro Mifune is unforgettable as Kingo Gondo, a wealthy industrialist whose family becomes the target of a cold-blooded kidnapper in Akira Kurosawa's highly influential High and Low (Tengoko to jigoku). Adapting Ed McBain's detective novel King's Ransom, Kurosawa moves effortlessly from compelling race-against-time thriller to exacting social commentary, creating a penetrating portrait of contemporary Japanese society. Criterion is proud to present High and Low in an all-new high-definition digital transfer.

Source: Criterion Collection

Toshirô Mifune: Japanese Actor
Tatsuya Mihashi: Japanese Actor
Tatsuya Nakadai: Japanese Actor
Tsutomu Yamazaki: 
Kyôko Kagawa: Japanese Actress
Susumu Fujita: Japanese Actor
Takashi Shimura: Japanese actor, RASHOMON

Akira Kurosawa: Japanese Director

Ryuzo Kikushima: Japanese Screenwriter
Tomoyuki Tanaka: Japanese producer

Ryuzo Kikushima: Japanese Screenwriter
Hideo Oguni: Japanese Screenwriter - RAN, THE HIDDEN FORTRESS
Akira Kurosawa: Japanese Director

"[With] superb tension-racheting sequences..."
"Kurosawa expertly balances cop-thriller elements with quieter, more personal moments."
"[A]n epic doozy....Witness its many intricately timed sequences..." -- Grade: A-