High-Rise Review

Laing was satisfied with life in the High-Rise (as was I)

High-Rise is the seemingly simple story of Dr Robert Laing starting his new life in the High-Rise. Very quickly this is turned on its head to reveal the horrifying truth of life in the High-Rise and its brutal social class system. As life breaks down, we view what happens to various residents, none more than Laing.

High-Rise starts in a very slow manner with an quiet yet powerful opening. Very bold text greets you in a sort of sixties font which does tell you a lot about the film already. Most things, from the costume to the mannerisms, are very reminiscent of the sixties.

I’d say none more than Sienna Miller’s portrayal of Charlotte. Being a single mother who throws extravagant parties and may or may not have slept with various residents of the High-Rise, she does give off a rather free-love, hippy vibe. Nothing more than her clothing can tell you this though. The hair, the jumpsuits, nearly everything about her screams retro chick. Shame that her acting (as usual) is nowhere near as good as her looks. She’s very bland in my opinion and doesn’t have a lot to offer in terms of acting style. She rather let the film down.

Tom Hiddleston on the other hand, was wonderful. I wouldn’t say flawless but he really brought Laing to life. He made me believe he was Laing so effortlessly. However, his portrayal seemed very Kafka-esque as its as if the horrifying events happening around him were just a little bother or an inconvenience rather than a tragedy. Much like Gregor Samsa’s reaction to becoming a beetle he seemed more interested in trivial things rather than the bigger picture, such as painting his flat rather than saving his friends.

The person who really stood out to me was Luke Evans as the tenacious Richard Wilder. Having not seen much of him since The Hobbit, I was curious about his role in High-Rise and I was not disappointed. He seemed to be the only character who really cared about what was going on around him. Even Laing declares Wilder to be the most sane of them all. He may be a family man in this picture but he is not your typical father. He is out at all hours partying with other residents rather than staying at home. His life may crumble around him but he seems to just get back up and carry on. As the High-Rise lifestyle starts to fall, Wilder is the only character who seems conscious of this and decides to expose it. This being the case, he is met with a little more than animosity. However, being a basement dweller, he will fight for his own. Also being alongside Elizabeth Moss, you can’t really go wrong.

I believe that the use of a class system really makes this film stand out. The entire thing is a huge metaphor for the social classes. It’s as if Royal, the architect or Jeremy Irons if you like, made his own social experiment within the High-Rise. However this never appears to be intentional. Jeremy Irons also plays Royal in a very Kafka style fashion as his reaction to most events is similar to Winnie the Pooh’s “Oh bother”. The idea of class becomes very apparent as Laing attends a party at the top of the High-Rise and is completely shunned (even by a student of his, but this is outside the High-Rise and thus is considered void in High-Rise life). This foreshadows the downfall of the classes as one push too far will start the uprising amongst the lower floors.

I found that the cinematography was actually rather striking as often the cuts are from floor to floor, demonstrating the collapse of life in the High-Rise as it does suggest them all becoming one. Also I found the scene in the supermarket to be very suggestive of this as you view people from the top in this cutthroat environment, combined with cuts to the top and very low key lighting. It’s rather clever in my opinion. Also Stacy Martin is always a win in my book, a wonderfully underrated actress.

All in all, High-Rise was a thoroughly enjoyable film. It held my interest throughout. Even when you couldn’t quite tell where you were with the plot, it always kept me curious. Not so much entertaining but thrilling. Definitely interesting.