“This is how I win”
I don’t think a film has made me feel as tense in a long time. Uncut Gems, directed by Josh and Benny Safdie, tells the story of a jewel dealer named Howard, played by Adam Sandler, who owes several debts to several different people due to his gambling addiction and follows his attempt to try and make the money back to pay these debts through the sale of a rare uncut black opal gem. The film reminded me in a way of Nicolas Winding Refn’s first feature film Pusher, in the sense that the focus is firmly on a character who seems to keep making the wrong decisions, with the luck never running for him and the walls around him closing in. When I say that the film follows his attempt, it really does follow it, we spend a lot of time with Howard and this helps to really integrate us into his journey as the film goes on.
This is another film that has been out in the United States for a while, now on a limited release in the UK starting from the 10th of January and due for a Netflix release on January 31st. Before seeing Uncut Gems, one of the main phrases I had heard used to describe the film was ‘uncomfortable’. It really is an edgy film, with characters talking over each other a lot of the time, tensions flaring up suddenly in many scenes and then through the narrative points of Howard making so many risky decisions in dangerous situations. I could see this film potentially being divisive, especially when it premieres on Netflix, where if the viewer isn’t properly immersed in the film the effect the Safdie brothers are trying to get across might be slightly lost, but it really worked for me. The atmosphere the film portrays is one of a man who constantly lives life under pressure, looking for the next thrill, the next win and once the story gets going and you become immersed into it, it puts you into the mindset of Howard and sets the pace of the film brilliantly.
This is where Sandler’s performance comes into play. For me, the film lives and dies based upon Sandler’s performance. He doesn’t play a particularly likable man, he has no sense of morality, no real sense of loyalty and is ultimately selfish. This could have made the film difficult to watch, as mentioned earlier, we spend pretty much every scene with this character. However, Sandler adds a real sense of nuance and layers to the character of Howard. Using his comedic skills, there are moments he manages to add warmth to his performance and you almost feel sorry for him in a few scenes, despite his actions and how he treats a lot of the people around him. Although Sandler has released some questionable films in past years, with Jack and Jill being one of the more bizarre releases, this performance is his best yet, with one particular scene towards the end showcasing a stunning ability to deliver his dialogue in a confident manner and making you buy into this character and his motivations, even though you might not necessarily agree with his actions.
The three main components that make Uncut Gems work apart from Sandler’s excellent performance are the sound design, the editing and the direction from the Safdie brothers. The sound throughout this film is constant, it’s an incredibly noisy film, apart from one or two scenes, with many variations of sound in different scenes, phones ringing, people shouting, people knocking on doors, creating a hectic and overwhelming feeling, this combined with the editing, which helps to keep the pace of the film quick, but not so quick that you miss out on important details, really helps to elevate the film and make it feel like more of an experience, rather than just watching the plot unfold in front of you. The plot itself isn’t too complex, but the way it’s presented is masterful and shows a real amount of love for the crime genre. The film is also currently in the top ten for the uses of the word “fuck”, with it being used 500 times, at a rate of 3.7 uses a minute. This feels very natural for the environment and characters and again helps to ramp up the tension and the feeling that these characters are constantly on edge.
Of course, with all of the hectic sound going on and the editing style, the strong direction is needed to make it not feel as messy as it could have been. The Safdie brothers manage to make the whole film feel more naturalistic, the scenes where characters speak over each other are really difficult to achieve without becoming too overbearing, but they manage to make them feel quite naturalistic. The rest of the cast is good as well as Sandler too, Idina Menzel doesn’t get too much to do, but does well in the scenes she has, while newcomer Julia Fox is the other standout in her debut film performance as the saleswoman in Howard’s store as well as his mistress. We also get two real life celebrities playing themselves in the film; The Weeknd and basketballer Kevin Garnett. While the Weeknd’s appearance is shorter and more of a cameo, Garnett’s character is very prominent in the plot and although for both of them their lack of acting experience does show here and there, they help to add realism to the film and more credence than if the film had used a fictionalized pop star and athlete.
At the time of the release of this review, it is now known that Adam Sandler hasn’t made the cut for the best actor nominations at this year’s Oscars. It’s been a really competitive year, especially in the best actor category and with A24 being known for not getting as involved with marketing for awards due to budgeting reasons, it was maybe inevitable that Sandler wouldn’t make the cut. I really hope that doesn’t dissuade him from appearing in more films of this nature though and maybe letting other directors guide his talents to create characters that resonate with the viewer. In Uncut Gems, he’s funny, malicious, pathetic, hateful and sympathetic all at the same time, which undeniably takes a lot of talent. Whether you see this during it’s limited theatrical release or when it hits Netflix at the end of the month, I’d highly recommend this anxiety fuelled crime thriller with a standout performance at the heart of it.
Overall rating – 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟/5
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