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''High-Rise'' is a 2015 British
dystopian A dystopia (lit. "bad place") is an imagined world or society in which people lead wretched, dehumanized, fearful lives. It is an imagined place (possibly state) in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or environmenta ...
thriller film Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre. ...
directed by
Ben Wheatley Ben Wheatley (born 1972) is an English filmmaker, film editor, and animator. Beginning his career in advertising, Wheatley first gained recognition and acclaim for his commercials and short films, before transitioning into feature films and tele ...
from a screenplay by Amy Jump, based on the 1975 novel of the same name by J. G. Ballard. The film stars
Tom Hiddleston Thomas William Hiddleston (born 9 February 1981) is a British actor. He gained international fame portraying Loki (Marvel Cinematic Universe), Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), beginning with ''Thor (film), Thor'' in 2011 and incl ...
, Jeremy Irons, Sienna Miller, Luke Evans, and Elisabeth Moss. The film is set in a luxury
tower block A tower block, high-rise, apartment tower, residential tower, apartment block, block of flats, or office tower is a tall building, as opposed to a low-rise building and is defined differently in terms of height depending on the jurisdiction. ...
in 1975. Featuring a wealth of modern conveniences, the building allows its residents to become gradually uninterested in the outside world. The infrastructure begins to fail and tensions between residents become apparent, and the building soon descends into chaos. In September 2015, the film received its world première at the
Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...
and its European première at the 63rd San Sebastián Film Festival. The film was released in the United Kingdom on 18 March 2016 by
StudioCanal StudioCanal S.A.S. (formerly known as Le Studio Canal+, Canal Plus, Canal+ Distribution, Canal+ D.A., and Canal+ Production and also known as StudioCanal International) is a French film & television production and distribution company which is a ...
. Though a modest critical success, the film's theatrical box office failed to meet its production costs. In 2017 it was nominated for the Empire Award for Best British Film.


Plot

In September 1975, Dr Robert Laing lives in a ravaged high-rise
tower block A tower block, high-rise, apartment tower, residential tower, apartment block, block of flats, or office tower is a tall building, as opposed to a low-rise building and is defined differently in terms of height depending on the jurisdiction. ...
, killing a dog and spit-roasting its leg. Three months earlier, the 40-storey tower on the outskirts of
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, built by esteemed architect Anthony Royal, is the epitome of chic, modern living. Wealthy residents live on the top floors, and poorer residents live below. With amenities including a pool, gym, spa, supermarket and primary school, the occupants have little reason to leave the building beyond working hours and become increasingly isolated from the outside world. Laing, who moves onto the 25th floor after his sister dies, begins a sexual relationship with single mother Charlotte Melville and becomes a father figure to her son, Toby. Laing also befriends documentary filmmaker Richard Wilder and his pregnant wife Helen, who live in a low-level apartment with their children. While Laing leads a
physiology Physiology (; ) is the science, scientific study of function (biology), functions and mechanism (biology), mechanisms in a life, living system. As a branches of science, subdiscipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ syst ...
class in examining a severed head, a student named Munrow faints and is given a precautionary brain scan. The next day, Laing is taken to the 40th-storey penthouse to meet Royal, who invites him to a party thrown by his snobby wife, Ann. The gathering turns out to be an 18th-century
costume party A costume party (American English) or fancy dress party (other varieties of English) is a type of party, common in contemporary Anglosphere, Anglo culture, in which many of the guests are dressed in costume, usually depicting a fictional or st ...
where Laing's everyday suit is ridiculed by Ann and other guests, including Munrow, who also lives in the building. Humiliated, Laing is thrown out of the party and becomes trapped in a lift during a power cut. Such power cuts are becoming common, along with water being shut off and garbage chutes becoming blocked, to the annoyance of residents. Royal tells Laing these are simply growing pains of a new building. Munrow's brain scans come back clean, but a vengeful Laing leads him to believe he has a brain tumour. Another power cut ignites a night of decadent partying throughout the high-rise, and a drunk Munrow commits
suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...
by jumping off the 39th floor. Suspicious that no police arrive to investigate, Wilder becomes intent on exposing the injustices within the high-rise. Law and order in the building disintegrate as violence and debauchery become commonplace, garbage piles up, food becomes scarce, and class warfare erupts between floors. Laing shows signs of mental disturbance, savagely beating a man, barricading himself in his apartment, and having sex with Helen. Wilder, having been beaten by upper-floor residents, decides to kill Royal, believing him responsible for the chaos. It is implied that Royal has bribed authorities to ignore the disorder. Acquiring a gun from the Royals' former housekeeper, Wilder learns that Toby is Royal's illegitimate child. Breaking into Charlotte's apartment, Wilder tortures and rapes her for information on Royal. A television newsreader named Cosgrove, the only upper-floor resident who still leaves for work, is killed by a gang of lower-floor residents. Some upper-floor residents butcher Ann's horse for meat and ask Laing to lobotomise Wilder as a dangerous agitator. After conducting a psychiatric examination, Laing refuses, stating that Wilder is "possibly the sanest man in the building". Laing is nearly thrown off the tower, but Royal intervenes. He surmises to Laing that the failure of the high-rise may actually be a kind of success, a "crucible for change" that could lead residents to escape to a new life. Helen gives birth to her overdue baby. Wilder makes his way to the penthouse, and after a confrontation with Royal, shoots him dead. Wilder is then stabbed to death by Royal's women, as Toby looks on through his kaleidoscope. The film ends as it began in the ravaged high-rise. Violence has abated somewhat since many residents are dead or have fled. Laing appears to have gone insane, speaking about himself and to others in the third person. He lies down with Charlotte, reflecting that what has happened will eventually occur in the second tower of the development. The film concludes with Toby listening to a radio broadcast of
Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013), was a British stateswoman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of th ...
declaring that "where there is state capitalism there can never be political freedom."


Cast


Production


Development

British producer Jeremy Thomas had wanted to make a
film adaptation A film adaptation transfers the details or story of an existing source text, such as a novel, into a feature film. This transfer can involve adapting most details of the source text closely, including characters or plot points, or the original sou ...
of J. G. Ballard's ''High-Rise'' since the 1970s. He tried to make it in the late 1970s with
Nicolas Roeg Nicolas Jack Roeg ( ; 15 August 1928 – 23 November 2018) was an English film director and cinematographer, best known for directing ''Performance (film), Performance'' (1970), ''Walkabout (film), Walkabout'' (1971), ''Don't Look Now'' (1973) ...
directing from a script by
Paul Mayersberg Paul Mayersberg (born 18 June 1941) is an English writer and director and was the film critic for ''Movie magazine'' in the early 1960s and author of 1968 film book ''Hollywood, The Haunted House''. Awards He received a nomination for Best Motio ...
. In the 2000s, Thomas began developing the project with screenwriter Richard Stanley and director
Vincenzo Natali Vincenzo Natali (born 1969) is an American-born Canadian film director and screenwriter, known for writing and directing science fiction and horror films such as ''Cube'', '' Cypher'', ''Nothing'', and '' Splice''. Early life and education Natal ...
, with the film intended as a loose adaptation of the novel. In 2013, Wheatley started looking into who held the rights to the book, which led him to Thomas. Wheatley has remarked: "The book makes as much sense now as it did then. It was written in the '70s, projecting itself into a near future, but we live in that future now. We're almost in a new version of the '70s." Screenwriter Amy Jump, who is also Wheatley's wife, adapted the book. Hiddleston's involvement in the project was announced in February 2014 after he was cast in the role of Dr Robert Laing. Hiddleston had previously worked with Thomas on
Jim Jarmusch James Robert Jarmusch ( ; born January 22, 1953) is an American film director, screenwriter and musician. He has been a major proponent of independent film, independent cinema since the 1980s, directing films such as ''Stranger Than Paradise'' ...
's 2013 film '' Only Lovers Left Alive''. The involvement of Luke Evans and Elisabeth Moss was announced that June. Clint Mansell composed the soundtrack for the film. International sales were handled by HanWay Films, and key financiers included the
British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...
and FilmFour.


Filming

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...
began in July 2014 in
Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
, primarily in the seaside resort town of
Bangor, County Down Bangor ( ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in County Down, Northern Ireland, on the southern side of Belfast Lough. It is within the Belfast metropolitan area and is 13 miles (22 km) east of Belfast city centre, to whic ...
. On 3 July 2014, Wheatley tweeted pictures of the set. On 6 August 2014, Hiddleston tweeted a photograph of himself from the set seen in character as Laing, together with Wheatley, Evans and
director of photography The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the recording of a film, television production, music video or other live-action piece. The cinematographer is the chief of the camera ...
Laurie Rose. Elisabeth Moss later remarked on Wheatley and the shoot: "I don't know anyone who makes movies like he does... (it was) like if you gave him a bigger crew, a little bit more money, costumes and hair and makeup, all of that stuff that maybe he hasn't had before. It was so fun, he is just a fucking genius and he's so funny."


Release

Prior to production on the film, it was announced that
StudioCanal StudioCanal S.A.S. (formerly known as Le Studio Canal+, Canal Plus, Canal+ Distribution, Canal+ D.A., and Canal+ Production and also known as StudioCanal International) is a French film & television production and distribution company which is a ...
and The Jokers would be distributing the film in the United Kingdom and France, respectively. In August 2015, it was announced that Soda Pictures would distribute the film in Canada. The film had its world première at the
Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...
on 13 September 2015. It had its international premiere at the San Sebastian Film Festival on 21 September 2015. The film went onto screen at the
London Film Festival The BFI London Film Festival is an annual film festival held in London, England, in collaboration with the British Film Institute. Founded in 1957, the festival runs for two weeks every October. In 2016, the British Film Institute, BFI estim ...
on 9 October 2015, and the Torino Film Festival on 22 November 2015. Shortly after, it was announced Magnet Releasing had acquired the US distribution rights to the film. The film was released on 18 March 2016 in the United Kingdom. The film was released in the United States on 28 April 2016, with a day and date
video on demand Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos, television shows and films Digital distribution, digitally on request. These multimedia are accessed without a traditional video playback device and a typica ...
and theatrical
limited release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few cinemas across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unite ...
on 13 May 2016. The film failed to recoup its production costs.


Critical response

Tim Robey of ''
The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are often names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * The Telegraph (Adelaide), ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaid ...
'' awarded ''High-Rise'' 4 out of 5 stars, praising the brutality and dark comedy. ''
IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
'' awarded it a score of 7.0 out of 10, saying "Enjoyably dark and disturbing adaptation of one of J.G. Ballard's best." Kate Wilson of '' Varsity'' gave the film a 5-star review, calling it a "masterpiece." In a review for '' Architects Journal'', Laura Mark was impressed by the "fantastic" visuals but noted that it lacked plot. Mark also stated that the dystopia portrayed reflected current concerns regarding
gentrification Gentrification is the process whereby the character of a neighborhood changes through the influx of more Wealth, affluent residents (the "gentry") and investment. There is no agreed-upon definition of gentrification. In public discourse, it has ...
and division. Others have noted the film's
nostalgia Nostalgia is a sentimentality for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations. The word ''nostalgia'' is a neoclassical compound derived from Greek language, Greek, consisting of (''nóstos''), a Homeric word me ...
for 1970s aesthetics. On
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
, it has an approval rating of based on reviews, with an average rating of . The site's critics consensus reads: "''High-Rise'' may not quite live up to its classic source material, but it still offers an energetic, well-acted, and thought-provoking take on its timely socioeconomic themes." On
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, the film has a score of 65 out of 100 based on reviews from 36 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".


Accolades


See also

* ''
Snowpiercer ''Snowpiercer'' () is a 2013 Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, post-apocalyptic action thriller film based on the French climate fiction graphic novel ''Le Transperceneige'' by Jacques Lob, Benjamin Legrand and Jean-Marc Rochette. The f ...
'' – a 2013 film with a similar plot of
class conflict In political science, the term class conflict, class struggle, or class war refers to the economic antagonism and political tension that exist among social classes because of clashing interests, competition for limited resources, and inequali ...
in an
allegorical As a literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a meaning with moral or political significance. Authors have used allegory throughou ...
society.


References


External links

* * * *''High-Rise'' at
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
{{J. G. Ballard 2015 films 2015 science fiction films 2015 thriller films 2010s science fiction thriller films British science fiction thriller films British satirical films Dystopian films StudioCanal films Film4 Productions films British Film Institute films Films about social class Films based on British novels Films based on thriller novels Films based on works by J. G. Ballard Films directed by Ben Wheatley Films produced by Jeremy Thomas Films scored by Clint Mansell Films set in 1975 Films set in apartment buildings Films set in London Films shot in Northern Ireland HanWay Films films Recorded Picture Company films 2010s English-language films 2010s British films British dystopian films Films about landlords English-language science fiction thriller films