‘Highest 2 Lowest’ Thrills With High Stakes: At The Movies With Kasey
After a limited release in theaters, Highest 2 Lowest is now streaming on Apple TV+. The crime drama centers on a powerful music mogul, David King (Denzel Washington), who faces moral dilemmas and a fight for his family after his son, Trey (Aubrey Joseph), is kidnapped. In the midst of King’s move to buy back the majority share of the record label he founded, the ransom demands tangle issues of loyalty and ethics with the pull of personal ambition and legacy.
Highest 2 Lowest draws on classic themes as it remakes a Japanese film, High and Low, based on the novel King’s Ransom by Ed McBain. This version dwells on issues of reputation and legacy, not only in King’s position, but also in his (and director Spike Lee’s) reverence for Black music and culture. A great soundtrack sets the tone for generational conflict while the screenplay also layers in issues around power, gatekeeping, and AI. The plot has elements that feel familiar to the thrillers Denzel Washington made twenty-five years ago. Still, the caliber of the performances and the Shakespearean hubris of the characters elevate the project.
Denzel Washington takes the nuanced character development of the screenplay and brings it to life with the most charming and brooding parts of his range. King is a hero in some scenes and a chilling narcissist in others, and Washington manages the complexity of the character masterfully. Opposite him, Jeffrey Wright is a compelling sidekick, and young Aubrey Joseph holds his own. As Pam King, Ilfenesh Hadera gives a flat performance that stands out as the weakest in an otherwise outstanding ensemble.
Highest 2 Lowest sometimes meanders and occasionally hits the themes around legacy a bit too hard, but the plot is exciting, and Denzel Washington brings a regal presence to the production.
Highest 2 Lowest was directed by Spike Lee and written by Alan Fox. It runs 133 minutes and is rated R.
Together is now available on various Video on Demand services, also after a limited release in theaters. In Together, Tim (Dave Franco) and Millie (Alison Brie) have been together for so long they are starting to question if they are committed to each other or just too codependent to break up. The tension escalates when they move out of the city and into the country for Millie to start a teaching job. Then, after falling into a mysterious cave while out on a walk, the pair begins to experience distressing symptoms that could destroy their lives, or bring them closer than ever before.
Together is one of the most fun horror movies I have seen in a while. Drawing considerably on the chemistry and comedic talents of Dave Franco and Alison Brie, who are married in real life, the film features some scary and disturbing sequences but also surprisingly humorous moments. The screenplay does an admirable job of highlighting the themes around codependency and commitment, leading the audience to consider the metaphors in the plot’s big twists without providing easy or obvious answers. If you have a significant other, this is a great film to watch together.
In part, the movie works so well and comes to a surprising and satisfying conclusion because of how writer/director Michael Shanks builds ambivalence in at every turn. We meet Millie and Tim at a difficult time in their lives, and it is easy to understand where each is coming from. When they fight, neither is really wrong, and both say things they regret. Similarly, as Millie’s colleague, Jamie, Damon Herriman’s performance is perfectly nice, but also just a bit creepy in a way that is hard to pinpoint. When the plot hits its climax, the pair has no good choices. These factors create a story that feels authentic, shocking, and thought-provoking. Together is bound to be a horror classic.
Together was written and directed by Michael Shanks. It runs 102 minutes and is rated R.
Over on HBO Max, Freaky Tales weaves together four stories set in Oakland, California in 1987, narrated by Too $hort, whose song the film’s title references. The stories star Pedro Pascal as a conflicted hitman, Ben Mendelsohn as a corrupt cop, Jay Ellis as NBA star Sleepy Floyd, and Dominique Thorne and Normani as a rap duo, Barbie and Entice. Oh, and Tom Hanks appears as a video store clerk. Throughout the tales run the looming threat of violence and a mysterious mind-control program, drawing them together with a final act that made me both laugh and want to vomit.
Freaky Tales moves from story to story at a steady clip and takes a playful, stylish approach to its retro setting. Still, the character development and plots are fairly shallow, relying on genre tropes and the episodic structure of the film. The product is therefore fun, but somewhat disappointing. Clichéd narrative choices let down the strong performances and creative cinematography.
Freaky Tales was written and directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck. It runs 107 minutes and is rated R.
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