Two minutes into this movie, I was over it. Ten minutes later, I was completely done. I kept watching. I pushed through the pain, and it WAS painful. It was just a bunch of angry men shouting at, and over, each other. Scene after scene just yelly chaos, and it wasn’t really an energy I was expecting or felt I could handle. But I kept watching because I realized this was exactly what directors Benny and Josh Safdie wanted me to feel.
Howard Ratner (Adam Sandler) is a New York City jeweler – not at Tiffany’s or Harry Winston’s, but in one of those shady-looking mess of stores in the diamond district where the real shit goes down. He’s got Furby pendants in his case and watches of questionable origin in his safe. It’s the kind of place you have to know about, or be lured to, and get buzzed in, which contributes to the seediness rather than a sense of security. Anyway, Howard is a wheeler and dealer always looking to get rich quick, and he needs to get rich because he’s got a girlfriend stashed in an apartment, hidden from his wife and kids, so he’s supporting at least two households that we know about. But his big score just came in: a black opal that’s going to net him a cool million. Except Howard’s not the kind of guy who does well with cash in hand, or even with just the possibility of it. He’s going to parlay that potential (but as yet unrealized) money into yet another high-stakes bet. Yup, Howard is a gambler, big time, and he owes money all over town. Because of course he does. The walls are closing in, the tough guys are getting antsier, and he’s pretty much out of moves.
So yeah. Howard’s life is pure and constant chaos, and the damn Safdie brothers are determined to make us viscerally aware of it. His frantic juggling act makes for uncomfortable viewing.
Adam Sandler is very good as a slimy man living on the brink. Rationally, we know that he’s on the brink of ruin, but addict that he is, inside the Vegas-like interior of his brain, with constant lights and sounds fooling him into believing him the next hit is sure to be the big one, he can’t stop. He just KNOWS that he’s due. And it’s actually very sad to watch someone hustle so hard, so deeply in denial, so dangerously mired in so very many bad situations. And Sean wants me to tell you that Kevin Garnett is also quite good…as Kevin Garnett. The he tried to show me some dated basketball clips so I pretended I needed to go for a very long pee. I think he got the hint.
Anyway, Uncut Gems is rough viewing and the only quiet moments are when we’re literally up his poop hole – and yes, that’s problematic in itself and definitely a weird kind of reprieve. It’s polarizing at best. Challenging for sure. Anxiety-triggering. A masterfully manipulated roller coaster that ends, I suppose, the only way it really could.
ASSHOLES WATCHING MOVIES 
I am not used to seeing Adam Sandler in this sort of character. He’s quite different in most of his other works.
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Most but not all, and when he takes a dramatic turn, it tends to turn out well (Reign Over Me, Punch Drunk Love).
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I agree, the word I use often to describe it is cacophonous. It’s a movie I ended up admiring more than enjoying. I don’t think I’ll go back to it again. I will, however, to Good Time. Which is interesting because I’m pretty sure Robert Pattinson played an even more obnoxious person.
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I haven’t seen it yet so I don’t want to read your review until I do. I do want to tell you that I was at the hairdresser yesterday and GQ (the one with Al Pacino and DeNiro on the cover) has a write-up on the clothes and jewelry Sandler wears in the movie. A lot of research and thought went into it. He was wearing $500,000 worth of jewelry!!!!!!
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Yes, they built a whole set just for his jewelry shop – it must have been so fun to outfit it!!
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That is very cool.
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I loved it
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Good Time impressed me and I’m curious to see how the Safdies’ latest feature measures up. From what I’ve read about Uncut Gems so far, they seem to have a real knack for crafting tension!
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Yes, it’s really their thing.
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I appreciate this movie, but I had the start of a sinus infection when I watched it so I was in physical pain the entire time and the plot did not help. I don’t think I could watch this again lol
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I had tickets to see it at TIFF but was i so much pain I skipped out and Sean was so mad at me because Kevin Garnett was there and everything!
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I have no intention of seeing this movie, especially now that I know a poop-hole is involved. LOL!
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Great work capturing this frenetic film. I liked it, but I felt hauled through the wringer afterward, a bit bruised. Check out their previous film, the masterful GOOD TIME with a terrific Rob Pattinson.
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I definitely have!
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It sounds pretty good. In theory.
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Not my kind of movie. Besides, Adam Sandler lost me as a fan many moons ago. Last night, I watched the conversation between Brad Pitt and Adam Sandler on the TV series ACTOR ON ACTORS. In Pitt’s estimation, Sandler did an amazing job in bringing the character, Howard Ratner, to life on screen.
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I do and always have liked Adam – back when he made funny comedies, and more recently when he dared to do drama. He’s quite a good actor when he’s got a good director.
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I hadn’t even heard of this before now. Sounds like Sandler pulled through the character pretty well, but it does seem like one of those films you have to be in the right mood for and able to tolerate the discomfort of it all!
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Netflix just emailed to announce that I could watch this if I wanted to, and I’m glad I came here before I bothered!
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And here I was hearing that this was quite good, especially for a Sandler flick. That he was doing something different.
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I started watching it yesterday and lasted about 30 minutes. Maybe I wasn’t in the mood for something so heavy?
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I found it really hard to get through. All the chaos really gets to you.
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I’m looking forward to seeing this one… sitting on the Netflix list. I probably would have watched it already, but I spotted John Wick 3 was on there and decided to finally watch 2 before hitting up 3. So I did. Anyhoo, I’ll get to this at the weekend… I reckon I’m okay with angry people shouting.
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I thought it was great to see Adam in a dramatic role and now I want to see more of him on Netflix! I hadn’t been a huge fan before as I found some of his movies to be, er, misses. There was a lot of mayhem in some of the scenes but I think that was telling of the chaos in his character’s mind.
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