High and Low

This might’ve changed my life, literally… Holy fuck, I’ve heard it thrown around constantly that the moment you watch foreign films you experience the best in movies. Out of fear that this was actually the case I refused to watch movies like until I got a good chunk of US films done. I don’t know why it’s just how my brain processed it. (Also because I couldn’t captions to work on my secret little movie website…)  Today however, it just felt like the time. I don’t know why I felt compelled to watch this, but I did. And holy crap. It was so incredible. The story, while so simple is incredible. The first act is intense and keeps you invested. You wonder how Gondo will navigate the situation. Everyone in the room is stressed and you can truly feel the performances. The second act is a bit of a detective segment. Giving us a look into how they are managing it. We also get to see the cost of Gondo’s decision as he loses his home and loses his position at the business. And the third act is fucking art. At points it feels like a horror movie and it’s so good. I don’t know what it is with 1960s movies and the performances in jail cells but fuck. The shaking and the entire speech is powerful and you can again feel the emotions from Tsutomu Yamazaki. Powerful, powerful stuff! The cinematography is brilliant too. The third act especially, and shot that includes Ginijirô glasses are just a chefs kiss. And the sequence on the train is fantastic. The sort of one shot framing makes it feel so modern. All around, this movie is incredible and probably the easiest 5 stars I have ever given. If you see this in my top 4 do not be surprised!