High and Low (1963)
Tengoku to jigoku (original title)Reference View | Change View
- Not Rated
- 2h 23min
- Crime, Drama
- 26 Nov 1963 (USA)
- Movie
An executive of a Yokohama shoe company becomes a victim of extortion when his chauffeur's son is kidnapped by mistake and held for ransom.
Director:
Writers:
Awards:
- 3 wins & 3 nominations.
- See more »
Reviews:
Photos and Videos
Complete, Cast awaiting verification
| Toshirô Mifune | ... |
Kingo Gondo
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| Tatsuya Nakadai | ... |
Chief Detective Tokura
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| Kyôko Kagawa | ... |
Reiko Gondo
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| Tatsuya Mihashi | ... |
Kawanishi - Gondo's Secretary
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Isao Kimura | ... |
Detective Arai
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| Kenjirô Ishiyama | ... |
Chief Detective 'Bos'n' Taguchi
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| Takeshi Katô | ... |
Detective Nakao
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| Takashi Shimura | ... |
Chief of Investigation Section
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| Jun Tazaki | ... |
Kamiya, National Shoes Publicity Director
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| Nobuo Nakamura | ... |
Ishimaru, National Shoes Design Department Director
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| Yûnosuke Itô | ... |
Baba - National Shoes Executive
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| Tsutomu Yamazaki | ... |
Ginjirô Takeuchi - Medical Intern
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| Minoru Chiaki | ... |
First Reporter
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| Eijirô Tôno | ... |
Factory Worker
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| Masao Shimizu | ... |
Prison Warden
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| Yutaka Sada | ... |
Aoki - the Chauffeur
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| Masahiko Shimazu | ... |
Shinichi Aoki
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Toshio Egi | ... |
Jun Gondo
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| Kôji Mitsui | ... |
Second Reporter
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| Kyû Sazanka | ... |
First Creditor
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Susumu Fujita | ... |
Chief of First Investigating Section
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| Kamatari Fujiwara | ... |
Junkyard Cook
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| Yoshio Tsuchiya | ... |
Detective Murata
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Kazuo Kitamura | ... |
Third Reporter
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| Gen Shimizu | ... |
Chief Physician
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Akira Nagoya | ... |
Detective Yamamoto
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| Jun Hamamura | ... |
Second Creditor
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| Masao Oda | ... |
First Executor at Tax Office
(as Masao Orita)
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| Kô Nishimura | ... |
Third Creditor
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| Yoshifumi Tajima | ... |
Chief Prison Officer
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Kôji Kiyomura | ... |
Fish Market Office Worker
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Hiroshi Unayama | ... |
Detective Shimada
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Yoshisuke Makino | ... |
Detective Takahashi
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Jun Kondô | ... |
Identification Center Worker
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Satoshi Suzuki | ... |
Detective Koike
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Senkichi Ômura | ... |
Messenger Passing Note to Intern
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Kazuo Katô | ... |
Identification Center Worker
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| Ikio Sawamura | ... |
Yokohama Station Trolley Man
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| Kin Sugai | ... |
Female Drug Addict
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Keiko Tomita | ... |
Murder Victim
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Isao Onoda | ... |
Male Drug Addict
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Seiichi Taguchi | ... |
Detective Nakamura
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Takeo Matsushita | ... |
Second Executor at Tax Office
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Kiyoshi Yamamoto | ... |
Detective Ueno
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| Kenji Kodama | ... |
Detective Hara
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Minoru Itô | ... |
Detective
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Haruo Suzuki | ... |
Undercover Detective 'Drug Addict'
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| Rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
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Bin Furuya | ... |
Yokohama station staff (uncredited)
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Akio Kusama | ... |
Detective (uncredited)
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Kôzô Nomura | ... |
Detective (uncredited)
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Masaaki Tachibana | ... |
Yokohama Station Crew Member (uncredited)
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Miki Yashiro | ... |
the Gondo family maid (uncredited)
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Directed by
| Akira Kurosawa | ||
Written by
| Hideo Oguni | ... | (screenplay) & |
| Ryûzô Kikushima | ... | (screenplay) & |
| Eijirô Hisaita | ... | (screenplay) & |
| Akira Kurosawa | ... | (screenplay) |
| Evan Hunter | ... | (novel "Kingu no minoshirokin") (as Edo Makubein) |
Produced by
| Ryûzô Kikushima | ... | producer |
| Akira Kurosawa | ... | associate producer |
| Tomoyuki Tanaka | ... | producer |
Music by
| Masaru Satô | ||
Cinematography by
| Asakazu Nakai | ||
| Takao Saitô | ||
Editorial Department
| Reiko Kaneko | ... | assistant editor |
Production Design by
| Yoshirô Muraki | ||
Costume Design by
| Miyuki Suzuki | ||
Production Management
| Hiroshi Nezu | ... | production supervisor |
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
| Masanobu Deme | ... | assistant director |
| Yoichi Matsue | ... | assistant director (as Yôichi Matsue) |
| Shirô Moritani | ... | chief assistant director |
| Kenjirô Ohmori | ... | assistant director |
Art Department
| Jun Sakuma | ... | assistant art director |
Sound Department
| Ichirô Minawa | ... | sound effects editor |
| Jin Sashida | ... | sound assistant |
| Hisashi Shimonaga | ... | sound mixer |
| Fumio Yanoguchi | ... | sound recordist |
Camera and Electrical Department
| Fukahirô Akike | ... | assistant lighting technician |
| Masao Fukuda | ... | still photographer |
| Kazutami Hara | ... | assistant camera |
| Ichirô Inohara | ... | lighting technician |
| Yûdai Katô | ... | assistant camera |
| Hiromitsu Mori | ... | lighting technician |
Script and Continuity Department
| Teruyo Nogami | ... | script supervisor |
Transportation Department
| Ginzo Osumi | ... | transportation coordinator |
Additional Crew
| Shigeru Kishima | ... | production assistant |
| Yûichi Yoshitake | ... | acting office |
Production Companies
Distributors
- Toho (1963) (Japan) (theatrical)
- East West Classics (1963) (World-wide)
- Continental Distributing (1963) (United States) (theatrical) (subtitled)
- Gala Film Distributors (1967) (United Kingdom) (theatrical) (subtitled)
- Gala Film Distribuzione (1967) (Italy) (theatrical)
- Svenska Filminstitutet (SFI) (1968) (Sweden) (theatrical)
- Palace Video (1983) (United Kingdom) (VHS)
- Pacific Arts Video (1988) (United States) (VHS)
- The Criterion Collection (1998) (United States) (DVD)
- Cowboy Pictures (2002) (United States) (theatrical) (re-release)
- Continental Home Vídeo (2003) (Brazil) (DVD)
- The Criterion Collection (2004) (United States) (DVD)
- trigon-film (2006) (Switzerland) (DVD)
- trigon-film (2006) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
- The Criterion Collection (2008) (United States) (DVD)
- Madman Entertainment (2006) (Australia) (DVD)
- Madman Entertainment (2006) (New Zealand) (DVD)
- Sandrews (2009) (Sweden) (DVD)
- Carlotta Films (2016) (France) (theatrical) (re-release) (restored version)
- Gala International Film (1967) (Italy) (theatrical)
- Janus Films (United States) (theatrical)
- Walter Reade-Sterling (United States) (theatrical) (re-release)
- BFI Video (2005) (United Kingdom) (DVD)
- Connoisseur Video (United Kingdom) (VHS)
- HBO Max (2020) (United States) (video) (VOD)
- Madman Entertainment (2024) (Australia)
- Madman Films (2024) (New Zealand)
- Sandrews (2005) (Sweden) (DVD)
- The Criterion Channel (2019) (United States) (tv) (digital)
- The Criterion Collection (2009) (United States) (DVD)
- The Criterion Collection (2011) (United States) (Blu-ray) (DVD)
- Toho (United States)
- WOWOW (2012) (Japan) (tv)
Special Effects
Other Companies
- Kyoto Costumes (costumes)
- Toho Studios (sound stages)
Storyline
| Plot Summary |
A wealthy businessman is told his son has been kidnapped and he will have to pay a very large sum for him to be returned safely. It is then discovered that his son is safe at home: the kidnapper took his chauffeur's son by accident. The kidnapper says this makes no difference: pay up or the child dies. This leaves him with a moral dilemma, as he really needs the money to conclude a very important business deal. Written by grantss |
| Plot Keywords | |
| Taglines | 142 Screenful Minutes of Thrills and Suspense! See more » |
| Genres | |
| Parents Guide | View content advisory » |
| Certification |
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Did You Know?
| Trivia | After the film was released, kidnappings were on the rise in Japan. Akira Kurosawa himself had received threats for the kidnapping of his own daughter, Kazuko Kurosawa. She quoted him as once saying to her "With High and Low, I wanted to inspire tougher sentences on kidnappers. Instead, I was criticized for their increase." See more » |
| Goofs | The story occurs in midsummer. This implies that Mt. Fuji has no snow. Since the location filming was carried out in winter season, the top of Mt. Fuji is very white. Some film critics mention that this is almost the only mistake they can find in the film. See more » |
| Movie Connections | Featured in Tsukuru to iu koto wa subarashii! Kurosawa Akira: Korega Kuroswa sasupensu da (2003). See more » |
| Soundtracks | The Magic Begins See more » |
| Quotes |
Kingo Gondo:
Why should you and I hate each other? Ginjirô Takeuchi, medical intern: I don't know. I'm not interested in self-analysis. I do know my room was so cold in winter and so hot in summer I couldn't sleep. Your house looked like heaven, high up there. That's how I began to hate you. See more » |