Denzel Washington and Spike Lee unite for a fifth time. Film lovers rejoice.
Spike Lee (left) and Denzel Washington take part in a press event for "Highest 2 Lowest" at the Cannes Film Festival, in Cannes, France, May 19, 2025.
Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP
Close to 20 years since their last film, 鈥淚nside Man,鈥� and more than 30 years since their iconic depiction of 鈥淢alcolm X,鈥� proud New Yorkers Denzel Washington and director Spike Lee still know how to captivate their audience through a press run.
鈥淎ll money ain鈥檛 good money, Jerry!鈥� Mr. Washington exclaims on the ESPN sports show 鈥淔irst Take,鈥� in a commentary about Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. Mr. Lee playfully eggs him on: 鈥淪ay it again!鈥�
It鈥檚 part of the promo for 鈥淗ighest 2 Lowest,鈥� their fifth film together, which opened in theaters on Aug. 15.
Why We Wrote This
In their new film, 鈥淗ighest 2 Lowest,鈥� Spike Lee and Denzel Washington continue a partnership that began in the 1990s and still, more than 30 years later, represents a gold standard for Black Hollywood鈥檚 past and present, our commentator writes.
We鈥檝e seen the duo at their highest as Malcolm (Mr. Washington) and Shorty (Mr. Lee), the zoot-suit-wearing, smooth-talking childhood friends walking past the Dudley Street Station in Boston鈥檚 Roxbury neighborhood. That dramatic opening scene in 鈥淢alcolm X鈥� kicked off a nearly three-hour movie that introduced a generation to the human rights icon.
We鈥檝e seen their characters at their lowest as Bleek Gilliam (Mr. Washington) and Giant (Mr. Lee) in 鈥淢o鈥� Better Blues.鈥� In their first collaboration in 1990, Bleek is the self-absorbed trumpeter and Giant his manager with the compulsive gambling habit. In the movie鈥檚 climactic scene, Giant gets jumped by a pair of loan sharks during one of Bleek鈥檚 sets, and when the trumpeter intervenes, he suffers an injury that ends his musical career.
And the camera shots! The director鈥檚 signature move 鈥� the 鈥渄ouble dolly shot鈥� 鈥� makes a motionless actor look like he or she is moving through time and space. Instead of one camera and operator on wheels to record action, Mr. Lee adds a second 鈥� and places an actor directly across from the camera. In 鈥淢alcolm X,鈥� the shot was focused on Mr. Washington and used as foreshadowing of X鈥檚 eventual assassination. In 鈥淢o鈥� Better Blues,鈥� Mr. Lee was famously in front of the camera displaying Giant鈥檚 terror when the bookie came calling.
Moving through time and space is a good way to view both men鈥檚 careers. They are men out of time, and yet, feel timeless. Their decades-long careers in Hollywood are a reminder of the hard-fought gains of actors such as Oscar-winning pioneers Sidney Poitier and Hattie McDaniel. But the recent creative run of director Ryan Coogler and actor Michael B. Jordan also shows that Mr. Washington and Mr. Lee are predecessors to the current generation.
Mr. Lee had a one-word answer for sports podcast host Bill Simmons when asked what was his (that wasn鈥檛 his): 鈥淪inners.鈥� After explaining that Mr. Coogler invited him to a screening in Los Angeles, Mr. Lee deadpanned that he would probably never be invited to another showing again. He was 鈥渏umping up and down鈥� in his seat as though his beloved New York Knicks were beating the Boston Celtics.
鈥淭hat film was transformative,鈥� Mr. Lee said. 鈥淭hat film took me to another place.鈥�
For 鈥淗ighest 2 Lowest,鈥� a remake of the 1963 Akira Kurosawa film 鈥淗igh to Low,鈥� Mr. Lee is revisiting another clever collaboration, 鈥淚nside Man鈥� 鈥� the crime drama.
Mr. Washington stars as David King, a music producer with a golden ear whose son seemingly becomes the center of a kidnapping plot. Joining Mr. Washington is another acclaimed actor, Jeffrey Wright, who plays King鈥檚 right-hand man, and rapper A$AP Rocky, who holds his own alongside Mr. Washington as the film advances. Further, all of the trademarks that fans of Lee and Washington love are present, whether it鈥檚 the director鈥檚 cinematography or the superstar鈥檚 megawatt smile.
When the movie isn鈥檛 busy taking viewers through the streets and subways of New York, it remarks upon Black achievement through mementos in King鈥檚 home. There鈥檚 Jackie Robinson, James Brown, and paintings of Jean-Michel Basquiat, whom Mr. Wright portrayed in his first starring film role. As Mr. Lee ties a bow at the end of his interpretation of Kurosawa鈥檚 鈥淗igh and Low,鈥� he even celebrates the literary legacies of Toni Morrison and Zora Neale Hurston. It is a fitting gallery to appreciate living legends, and both Lee and Washington, whether in front of or behind the camera, fit the bill.
As for the movie itself, it鈥檚 a film that gets better as it goes along, and like 鈥淢o鈥� Better Blues,鈥� it ends with a self-absorbed music man recalibrating his heart to find a sense of family. But it is a hard-fought sense of perspective that takes our protagonist from highest to lowest, and back up the mountaintop.
What鈥檚 most rewarding about this film, though, is the staying power of the two leading men. They鈥檙e graying around the beard, but still show that they have what it takes around Hollywood.
In other words, they still got game.