Slate’s movie reviewer said that Adam Sandler’s dramatic performance in Uncut Gems was the best of the year, which could have been reason enough for us to see it on Christmas Day. But in addition to that, another Slate reviewer called it “the most Jewish movie in years,” and, well, that pretty much cinched our classic annual Christmas outing. We went early this year, figuring that the theater would be pretty empty at 10:00 am. We were wrong. The auditorium was full for Uncut Gems, as the Jewish community of Evanston and nearby environs had evidently read the same reviews. Perhaps everyone was planning on Chinese food for lunch instead of dinner. I don’t know if the auditoriums for Skywalker and Cats were full, but they had many more scheduled showings on multiple screens.
Slate was right about Sandler’s performance, which I believe was only his second in a non-comedy. It was outstanding: intense, gripping, believable, fully realized. He plays Howard Ratner, a New York diamond district jeweler who is trapped in a series of disastrous personal and financial choices. He is a compulsive gambler, adulterer, neglectful parent, and deadbeat, and yet the character is so magnetic that we are moved to care about what happens to him. The story line involves Howard’s ownership and attempt to sell a unique black opal, in order to pay off his various gambling debts. You could call it a picaresque. There is no actual plot; we just follow Howard through about a week of buying, selling, hustling, cheating, and betting, with a brief respite for a Passover seder. It is not a spoiler to say that he seems to make the wrong turn at every opportunity.
It is a triumph of writing and directing that we end up caring about Howard, who is thoroughly unlikable. It is fair to say that pretty much every character in the film is unlikable to one degree or another, with the exception of Kevin Garnett (playing himself) who has the best and most decent line in the film (in fact, the only expression of decency or altruism). Garnett does a great job, which made me wonder how many NBA stars were screen tested before the Safdie brothers discovered Garnett’s acting chops. (Also, KG is from Chicago; maybe he studied drama at Farragut High School.)
Let me just say that Uncut Gems has great acting, writing, and direction – but there was no moment when we were not uncomfortable watching it. Perhaps that is the hallmark of a “taut thriller,” as it has been called by reviewers. It will not disappoint you, if that's the sort of thing you like.
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