The Stream: Typical storyline and some really bad teeth

The Big Screen: An intense film that depicts the dangers of gambling

The Final Bill: A solid movie that is best watched in a loud environment and with friends

-S2S

Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery
Rating: R (Strong language, violence, one sexually graphic scene)
Director: Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie
Runtime: 2 hours 9 minutes
Notable Trailers: Like A Boss, The Photograph, The Way Back, Promising Young Woman (intriguing), and Saint Maud (intriguing)

Happy New Year! Your present is a couple gems about Uncut Gems. This movie stars and I do mean stars Adam Sandler in what some may say is his best performance. It’s a mix of classic Sandler with terrible teeth and good acting. Sandler plays a jeweler who constantly finds himself too deep in the situations he’s created. Let’s see if he can dig himself out.

The summary above is the most I can give you without ruining the already simple storyline. Strangely enough, the movie is predictable but not ruined by that fact. We’ve seen this plot in many movies before, but it’s the execution and the cast that differentiates this movie. Sandler, LaKeith Stanfield, Julia Fox, others and yes even Kevin Garnett do a really great job in this movie. Sandler’s performance, minus the teeth, was the perfect stereotypical portrayal of this character. When we he is high, we are high. When he is manic, we feel manic. Ultimately, I found myself saying how deep can my man go and get out of, and boy, do we find out.

Here are the trouble spots of this movie, which might be controversial. This movie is “too loud” for some viewers. Everything in this movie is loud, over the top and in your face. While I enjoyed most of it, I do realize how this atmosphere/culture displayed could be “annoying or offensive” to certain viewers. I can understand how certain viewers just wouldn’t appreciate the contemporary nature of things occurring in the movie. Some might say it’s too “urban”. *side eyes those people* But truthfully, the movie was on the borderline of being too in someone’s face.

Long story short, Uncut Gems is a film that is both super predictable but nevertheless not ruined by its predictability. The intense nature of this film ultimately lends itself to being seen. Now, I leave that up to you all. You absolutely don’t need to see this in the theater, but I will note the nature of the big screen and music could amplify the viewing nature. Your best bet is watching this at home with a few betting friends and make a few drinking game wagers through the film.