This was the final film in a folder I had labeled 'Classic Thrillers.' Apparently, it's loosely based on the novel King's Ransom by Ed McBain. This is a Japanese film and almost the entire thing is in black and white. There's a brief moment of color that I thought was kinda neat.
A businessman deals with his driver's son being kidnapped. Well, at first he thinks it's his child, but it soon becomes clear it was his servant's son. Now, the kidnapper wants $30 million yen, which is a lot for the time. The man struggles with whether or not to pay the ransom, but eventually he does the right thing.
They do get the boy back, but the case is far from over. The police see what the sacrifice has done to the businessman, and they are determined to find the kidnapper. The problem is, if they do get him, they can only send him to prison for 15 years. They'd like more, but the main goal is to get the money back.
At first, I thought I was watching the wrong movie. Literally the first five minutes were a couple of men talking about shoes. Women's shoes. I wondered how this seemingly meaningless conversation would turn into a thriller, but it got there pretty pick. I liked the way they showed the police procedures to track the kidnapper. My one main issue was wondering why the kidnapper had an agenda against the businessman to begin with. It was sort of answered at the very end, but I guess trying to apply logic to the unhinged was setting myself up for failure.
Overall, this was a pretty good film. The people in the film looked super hot, and they must have been miserable. I really liked how the businessman didn't automatically agree to pay the ransom. He struggled with the idea for a while, and it felt more realistic that way. Good Movie!
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