I'm always happy when an artist that I'm not a big fan of, but I always respect the work, presents a remarkable performance that exceeds all my expectations causing a strong positive impact and therefore earning my admiration. This is the case of the film "Uncut Gems" written and directed by the Safdie Brothers (Good Time) and starring Adam Sandler (Punch Drunk Love), which gives the character body and soul and provides a very interesting acting that perfectly fits the comic / tragic style of the actor. The character, Harold Ratner (Sandler), is what we would call admirable anti-hero and how the film and script - co-written by Ronald Bronstein - who has also lived with the Safdie in previous films) revolves around him, who he plays this Jew who owns a jewelry store, in which he conducts his business not so orthodox but also making it almost impossible not to like Howard in the first few scenes.
The story takes place in Manhattan, in the diamond district, with all the excitement and dynamism that the area has. Harold is also addicted to gambling on games and ends up incurring a huge debt that he can't pay off with his brother-in-law, who chases him with a bunch of "gross loads" always trying to get the money Howard owes, to complete his life. His marriage is not good and the wife Dinah (Idina Menzel) who criticizes him all the time and who has been wanting a divorce, precisely because of his lack of dedication. Howard then, to make up for what he doesn't find at home, seeks comfort with his girlfriend Julia de Fiori (Julia Fox), who works for him at the jewelry store. But, Howard's luck is about to change when he lands a crude and precise opal, which was smuggled from Ethiopia in 2010, and arrives in Howard's hands in 2012.
Howard is partnered by Demany (Lakeith Stanfield), who manages to bring in basketball player Kevin Garnett, who plays himself, and who is interested in buying a gem from Howard, but Howard has a commitment to auction the gem the next day, in which he believes that with this he will receive enough money to pay off all his debts and still have a lot of money left. The Safdie Brothers handle this story very well and even with little twelves of humor interspersed with drama in just the right measure without falling into the typical clichés that could become a trap. The action is loaded with a good suspense that leaves us wondering what will happen next and so we stay side-by-side with Howard hoping that he at least once hits his intuitions and manages to reach his goal. And from that moment on, adrenaline kicks in. With excellent actors around him Adam Sandler shines.
This is without a doubt among his best films, alongside Punch Drunk Love. I really like the cinematography here by Darius Khondji, as well as the Soundtrack (Daniel Lopatin), also very well and the film even features Abel Tesfaye (pop star The Weeknd) in an interesting scene in a nightclub. Perhaps if there is a moral to this story, it is an old classic saying: “Crime doesn't pay”. But this trip, which lasts 2 hours and 15 minutes, is simply worth it.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
4K TRANSFER WITH DOLBY ATMOS AUDIO TRACK
DOLBY VISION/HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM, plus 1080p presentation of the film on Blu-ray
Audio commentary from 2019 featuring writer-directors Josh Safdie and Benny Safdie, writer and editor Ronald Bronstein, and producer Sebastian Bear-McClard
New interviews with cinematographer Darius Khondji, costume designer Miyako Bellizzi, and casting director Jennifer Venditti
Documentaries from 2019 and 2020 on the making of the film and soundtrack
Screen test featuring actors Adam Sandler and Julia Fox
Goldman v. Silverman, a 2020 short film by the Safdies, featuring Sandler and Benny Safdie
"Question & Answer," a 2020 short film featuring the Safdies, Sandler, actor Jason Bateman, and comedy writer Megan Amram
Deleted and extended scenes, including a full performance of "The Morning" by the Weeknd
Trailer
English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
PLUS: An essay by film critic J. Hoberman and, for the Blu-ray, a 2020 discussion of the film by the editorial staff of Jewish Currents magazine
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