When news broke that Spike Lee was remaking Akira Kurosawa’s crime classic High and Low, you’d be forgiven for feeling at least a little nervous. The director’s track record when it comes to reinterpreting beloved cinema is far from stellar: his 2013 take on Park Chan-wook’s cult classic Oldboy was less a reimagining and more a greatest-hits highlight reel that failed to capture the exhilarating yet queasy spirit of Park’s film.

Highest 2 Lowest was shot across New York, with elaborate action scenes in the Bronx, set against the backdrop of Yankee Stadium. During the presser, Lee was asked about shooting in New York and how he thinks the recent drop in production in the city could be resolved.

N o filmmaker loves the dirty old town that is New York more than Spike Lee. Some of us who live there will return from a day out and about—a day whose adventures might include