Spike Lee is showing his age.

That’s not a slight, but simply an acknowledgment of the mature set of concerns on display in his latest film, “Highest 2 Lowest,” a crime drama set in New York.

“Highest 2 Lowest” stars Denzel Washington as David King, a veteran record label mogul whose glory days are behind him. When his world is threatened by a kidnapping extortion scheme, King struggles to remain on top in his industry, protect his family, and ultimately do the right thing.

Lee’s source material is the 1963 classic film, “High Low,” directed by one of Lee’s cinematic godfathers, Akira Kurosawa. “High Low” is itself loosely based on the 1959 novel, “Kings Ransom,” by Evan Hunter. The Kurosawa film takes on archetypal moral dilemmas and presents a critique of Japanese culture under Wester

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