Digital Gym Cinema kicks off its September series of film restorations with "Night of the Juggler," followed by a pair of Akira Kurosawa classics.
I love that respected distributor Kino Lorber sees the value of restoring and theatrically distributing not only art house classics, but also films some might dismiss as lowbrow fodder. B movies and grindhouse titles deserve to be reclaimed from the margins and celebrated.
Digital Gym Cinema embraces this range by programming both Kurosawa masterpieces and the gritty grindhouse gem "Night of the Juggler."
Shot on location in New York, the 1980 thriller captures a city consumed by crime. It's an efficient exploitation flick and a vivid time capsule of the era. It’s also irresistible genre filmmaking with Cliff Gorman making his creepy, racist psycho more than a one-dimensional stereotype, while James Brolin does more running than acting as a former cop trying to rescue his kidnapped daughter.
Director Robert Butler — a veteran of TV credits ranging from the original "Star Trek" to "Hill Street Blues" — keeps the pace fast and turns an unflinching eye on the city's underbelly, resulting in a gloriously quintessential New York film.
"Night of the Juggler" screens Sept. 2 at 7 p.m.
The following week brings a change of tone. Director Kurosawa and actor Toshiro Mifune team up to rivet us to the screen with "High and Low" (1963). The two had been collaborating since 1948, and they work their magic once again in this tense tale of a kidnapping.
The film is based on Evan Hunter's hard-boiled 1959 American novel "King's Ransom," written under the pseudonym Ed McBain. And you can pair this up with Spike Lee's upcoming film "Highest 2 Lowest" draws inspiration from both the novel and Kurosawa's adaptation.
As with "Night of the Juggler," a kidnapping is at the center of this film. In "High and Low," Mifune plays Kingo Gondo, a wealthy industrialist whose family becomes the target of a kidnapper. Kurosawa noted he was drawn to this story after someone he knew had been impacted by a kidnapping.
The film unfolds as both a family drama and a police procedural, delivering a tense race-against-time thriller that is also rich with social commentary. Mifune is always a dynamic presence but Tsutomu Yamazaki cuts a cool, cruel figure as the kidnapper. Kurosawa's compassion and humanity allowed him to make the kidnapper a complex character and not just a one-dimensional villain.
The restoration series closes Sept. 16 with Kurosawa's "Ikiru" (1952), a much smaller and quieter but equally riveting work. Made 11 years before "High and Low," "Ikiru" showcases Kurosawa at his most human and compassionate. Takashi Shimura portrays Kanji Watanabe, an aging bureaucrat with stomach cancer. As he faces death, he decides to take actions to give meaning to his life.
As he had done just a few years earlier with "Rashomon," Kurosawa plays with narrative structure to deliver an exquisite portrait of Watanabe's search for purpose. "Ikiru" inspired the 2022 remake "Living," where Bill Nighy shined in the lead role. Both films highlight Kurosawa's range and mastery of tone and style.
Seeing these films on a big screen is the absolute best way to enjoy them. I’m grateful that distributors are restoring them and cinemas are showing them. So please fill those seats and show support.
