Uncut Gems: Amateur Review
I know I’m late to the party with this movie, but I never got to experience Uncut Gems until now. And with all the sad events that are happening in the world, I needed a distraction. If you’ve already seen this movie your probably thinking how this is the worst possible choice to watch right now due to its high amount of stress. Most of the time you would be right. But to be honest the only thing that can take my mind off of things is a movie that keeps my eyes glued to the screen and my butt on the edge of my seat. Otherwise, I would inevitably have reached for my phone and opened Twitter for the 363rd time.
Uncut Gems is about compulsive gambler Howard Ratner, played by Adam Sandler, who happens to work in the jewelry business and also happens to have a family. It’s clear from the start that the shop and family are not as important as feeding his addiction. His shop appears to have nice merchandise and rich customers, but he still owes half of the people in New York City money. Including an acquaintance named Arno who’s thugs harass Howard and serve as the primary antagonizers to Howard’s life.
While it seems most of Howard's bets don’t pay off, it appears he’s finally nailed one. Using some shady methods, he snuck a rare Opal gem out of Africa for a small price of its worth. This gem will be his big break and get him out of all his debts. The only person who loves that jewel more than Howard is basketball star Kevin Garnett — played by himself — because he experiences a personal connection with the stones and thinks it will improve his game.
We’ve seen dozens of examples where adding a professional athlete to a movie feels clunky, but with Garnett it’s seamless. He received a lot of praise, deservedly so, but I think maybe an even bigger surprise was Julia Fox — who plays Julia De Flor. I think she played the side girlfriend better than anyone in the last 10 years. You shouldn’t like her since she’s a home-wrecker. But it’s impossible not to root for her and Howard’s relationship despite its obvious flaws.
The directors — Josh and Benny Safdie — did a marvelous job of keeping me stressed while watching their movie. The camera is shaking, moving, or at an odd angle in most scenes. The characters cut each other off and yell over each other. There is always a sense that something will go wrong.
My biggest note from the movie — Adam Sandler is funny again! This might technically be a dramatic role, but he made me laugh more in Uncut Gems than in his last 5 (maybe closer to 15) movies combined. It wasn’t the same hold your gut laughs that we got with Happy Gilmore and Billy Madison. These laughs were more chuckles. But it’s still a tremendous improvement and for the first time in years, I’m excited to see what Sandler does next.
I think this movie was one of the best of 2019 and I think it will have some legs as a movie I will want to watch many times over. If you haven’t had a chance to watch it yet, throw it on and enjoy the ride.
This last bit features spoilers. I recommend you skip if you haven't already seen Uncut Gems.
My favorite things about the movie in no particular order.
- Furby Necklaces: When I first saw it my initial thought was is that real and how much is it? Turns out A24 studio did make them! They are made out of stainless steel and only cost $250… but they are sold out. Crap. Maybe when someone decides to make beanie baby bling, I’ll have my chance to wear a piece of my childhood around my neck as a status symbol.
- Julia De Flor: Every con-man needs a ride-or-die chick and Julia is one of the best I’ve ever seen. She covers the two most important aspects. Being there for Howard emotionally and risking her life to support his gambling habit. Making Julia what the kids call wifey material. Her only mistake was letting The Weekend get to close to her. And I’m putting most of the blame on The Weekend for that bathroom incident. He knows women can’t resist him, yet he abused his power to get in the way of true love. Not cool.
- Kevin Garnett: I’ll admit I’m a Celtics fan and would have pretended to like KG’s performance no matter what. He could have stared at the camera in every scene without saying anything and I would have thrown roses at his feet. But I didn’t have to fake anything. KG was good. I think we could see him in more movies down the line.
Things I wasn’t a fan of.
- As a Celtics fan, I knew they were going to win that game 7 which controlled the fate of the big bet. Don’t get me wrong, seeing the last legs of that Celtics team brought back great memories, but it also made it less dramatic. Would it have been possible to make the bet hinge on KG getting one more rebound or point? Something even the most die-hard fan couldn’t remember off the top of their heads. Or am I being selfish? Definitely being selfish? Gotcha. Moving on.
- I’m not a huge fan of Demany (the man who introduces KG to Howard). I don’t get his motives. I understand that he brings in clients for Howard in exchange for Demany being allowed to hock fake Rolex’s, but why does he intentionally screw with Howard? Demany tells Howard he has the opal and that they can meet at a party so he can give it back to him. But then he doesn’t have it and we never learn why. I also have no idea how he is able to walk into Celtics practices like he’s part of the team. Are NBA teams okay with that? Plus screw Demany for trying to kill Howard’s fish. (It’s possible I’m just jealous Demany gets to be friends with KG.)
