ReelBob: ‘Uncut Gems’ ★★★
By Bob Bloom
Howard Ratner is a moving and talking dynamo. Howard is a jeweler in the Diamond District of New York City where he constantly wheels and deals, mostly to get money to support his gambling habit.
Howard is a compulsive bettor, especially about the NBA, where he bets not only on games, but on individual players, rebounds, points scored — whatever action he can get.
He also owes money all over the city.
And as detailed in the Safdie brothers’ frantic and breathless “Uncut Gems,” Howard’s obsession blinds him to how those in his orbit view and react to him.
Howard, as encapsulated by Adam Sandler, is a grating individual. He also is very self-unaware and self-involved. He has no idea how annoying he is to his wife, his family and other people in his business and betting orbits.
If Robert Pattinson’s repugnant Connie Nikas from the Safdies’ 2017 movie, “Good Time” was a nine of 10 on a scale of ignorance about himself, then Sandler’s Ratner is 12.
The man simply blathers at a machine-gun pace, spewing bullshit and lies, keeping everyone around him unbalanced and exasperated.
Howard is not a crook, per se. He’s just a shady character who juggles his finances like a drunken conjuror. Just when you think he’s going to drop one object, he is able to recover and keep it in the air.
“Uncut Gems,” set in 2012, takes place over one frantic weekend as he is preparing what he thinks is the deal of a lifetime. Howard has secretly acquired a rock from Ethiopia loaded with various uncut opals. He believes it is worth millions and has consigned it to an auction house.
For a weekend, he simply has to deflect from all those he owes money to restore equilibrium to his life.
Howard, however, is his own worst enemy, so things do not go according to plan.
Howard caters to many black customers, including professional athletes. When Demany (LaKeith Stanfield), his contact to black celebrities, brings Kevin Garnet into Howard’s store, the basketball-wild Ratner goes crazy.
Against his better judgment, he loans Garnet the valuable rock for 24 hours. Of course, when the basketball star fails to return it on time, Howard’s world begins a downward spiral.
I am not a big fan of Sandler and his comedies. But I was impressed by his performance in “Punch Drunk Love.”
In “Uncut Gems,” Benny and Josh Safdie allow him to unleash the manic persona he brings to his comedy in a dramatic forum.
And Sandler rises to the occasion. You simultaneously despise him yet admire him for his chutzpah.
There’s an old joke about a son found guilty of killing his parents. When he is about to be sentenced, he asks the judge for leniency because he’s an orphan. That sums up Howard Ratner.
Sandler’s characterization is so overwhelming that it eclipses a strong supporting cast which, beside Stanfield and Garnet, include Eric Bogosian, Julia Fox, Idina Menzel and Judd Hirsch.
“Uncut Gems” is not an easy movie to watch, especially at 135 minutes. Sandler makes it an exhausting experience. Plus, a few dead spaces could have been trimmed to whittle down the running time.
The movie is a case study in anxiety, and, as you watch “Uncut Gems,” you will begin feeling that emotion rubbing off on you.
I am a founding member of the Indiana Film Journalists Association. My reviews appear at ReelBob (reelbob.com) and Rottentomatoes (www.rottentomatoes.com). I also review Blu-rays and DVDs. I can be reached by email at bobbloomjc@gmail.com or on Twitter @ReelBobBloom. Links to my reviews can be found on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
UNCUT GEMS
3 stars out of 4
(R), language, graphic violence, brief drug use, sexual content