Enter the Sandman: The Genius of Uncut Gems

Uncut Gems is a masterpiece. Review done, that is all I need to say about this film, it is incredible. There is truly no film like it, the film hits every single beat like Floyd Mayweather against whatever amateur opponent he is fighting for an easy pay day these days, an absolute knock out. I could leave it at that but if that was all I said about this work of art, I would be doing it a disservice. So please if you have not watched this film… what have you been doing? Go do it now! And for those wonderful people that have seen the film, here are my thoughts on Uncut Gems.

To discuss Uncut Gems, I want to discuss a different Safdie brothers film, Good Time. Now, this might seem slightly odd, after banging on about how great this film is, to start my discussion by talking about another film, but hear me out. Good Time almost sets the blueprint for this film. Good Time is a fast paced, nocturnal nightmare of a viewing experience. The grimy, underground setting of the backstreets make a city as large as New York feel claustrophobic. Couple this with the poor decisions made by Robert Pattinson’s character in quick succession, one after the other, with no time for a breather and you have a stressful viewing experience. The Safdie brothers took these elements, for Uncut Gems, especially the stress factor, and dialled them up by 1000%.

Uncut Gems is the most stress inducing film I have ever watched. The film follows Howard and his rather pathetic life. On the surface it seems ideal, he is a successful diamond jeweller in New York, has a lovely house, a wife, and kids. But that façade is soon thrown to the side when we discover his true love: gambling on basketball. Howard is in severe debts to his brother-in-law, his wife wants to leave him, he is seeing one of his employees who is much younger than him. Any illusions of grandeur go out the window right there, along with any respect you might have had for Howard.

However, Howard, despite everything going on around him, never learns. Already in debt, the film shows him early in the runtime going to pawn a ring. You would think that this would be to get his debts back, but instead uses the money to try and place another bet. This is a man so consumed by his gambling addiction it has well and truly taken over his life. The thing with Howard is, he is very clearly a slime ball. He is an awful person that cheats on his wife, rips off everyone he knows, gambles with his relative’s money. Everything he does is self-serving and digging himself deeper into trouble. Nothing goes well and he has miserable time with the debt collectors, being locked naked in his car and thrown into a fountain. Everything goes so wrong, and he revels in the pity party. However, that all changes in that speech to KG. It is at that point that Howard flips the script and seizes control. That speech, the ‘this is how I win’ speech, is so powerful and changes the character after that moment. He stops being a coward and takes matters into his own hands. When he locks the debt collectors in the box and wins the bet, he has fulfilled his dreams. Basketball and betting are his life, it is the sad truth. When that bet comes in, he is at the peak of his existence, he has won. That’s why what comes next is so perfect. The debt collector killing him completely caught me of guard, but it is the perfect ending. Howard goes out on a high. Had he stayed alive he would no doubt have gambled the money away and gone back to a sad existence. He went out on a high, just like a professional basketball player retiring after winning a championship; this is how Howard wins.

The Safdie brothers use a clever technique to keep this film flowing at such a breakneck speed. Each event is broken down into such a small act, but the consequences snowball and ramp up until the stakes could not be higher. Everything going wrong is all tied in and intertwines so effectively that any move to a different side plot ties into the main issue of Howard’s debt; there is no break from the tension. Howard gets the gem to pay off his debt, but in showing KG, loses it which effects his auction. On the side of this his debt is spiralling and he is pawning jewellery that he does not own and making more bets to try and get his way out of it. This all culminating in the ultimate bet at the end. Never has any scene in a movie had me more on edge than that moment.

Sandler is the perfect actor for this role. Make no mistake, no number of horrendous films like Jack and Jill can take away from this man’s acting ability. If anything, those ridiculous films make him the perfect candidate. The Safdie brothers were adamant that Sandler was their guy. This film was made with him in mind, and it is easy to see why. Howard is a ridiculous person; he needs someone that can fully encapsulate his absurdities but also play it dead straight. When you have a character that no one takes seriously in the film, but must play it completely straight, the performance tightrope walks fine line between brilliance and laughingstock. Sandler gets it spot on. He understands exactly how to make Howard look stupid but keeps him grounded. His chemistry with Idina Menzel is brilliant. The hatred she has for him is so strong and thedisgust for his stupid antics is fantastic. The scene where he tries to get her back in such a sleazy way with his stupid grin is exactly what this is about. He is being disgustingly desperate, but he does not even realise how foolish he is. The fact that Sandler and the Safdie brothers had me rooting for Howard at the end is a testament to the care and craft that went in to making this film, and in particular the character of Howard. The fact that Sandler did not get an Oscar nomination, let alone the best actor award, is a disgrace.