Reed Andrus (randrus@home.com)
Wed, 27 Oct 1999 04:47:56 -0700
> From: Bob Toomey <btoomey@javanet.com>
> > But we still don't know if Kurosawa knew
Hammett. But in the early
> > sixties he filmed Ed McBain's novel - in
Finland the film is called
> > "Heaven and Hell", but just now I don't
remember what McBain novel it
> > was. Maybe Kurosawa did know American hard
boiled literature.
>
> That would be _Tengoku to jigoku_ (_High and Low_,
1963), based on
> McBain's _King's Ransom_. Toshiro Mifune plays the
business executive
> whose chauffeur's son is kidnapped by mistake. The
kidnappers were
> after Mifune's kid. Now he has to decide whether to
pay the ransom for
> somebody else's son with the money he intended to
use to close a
> critical business deal. It was a lovely moral
dilemma in McBain's book,
> and Kurasawa does a magnificent job with
it.
Interesting. It's been many, many years since I read _King's
Ransom_, but your comment keyed a memory of William P.
McGivern's _Night of the Juggler_ -- cab driver's kid gets
kidnapped by mistake, and the hunt is on. I don't remember
any moral dilemma in the McGivern piece; he opted
(as I recall) for more action and the suspense of whether or
not a slightly deranged kidnapper would off the kid, or
recognize his mistake and return him. Good writing.
Guess I'll go try _King's Ransom_ again.
... Reed
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