Uncut Gems (2019)
★★★★ — Uncut Gems (2019)
Benny and Josh Safdie had already announced themselves as a serious filmmaking force with Good Time (2017), their feverish Robert Pattinson thriller, but Uncut Gems represented a significant step up in scale and profile. Shot largely on location in New York's Diamond District, the film cast Adam Sandler against type in a role that had reportedly been developed with him in mind for years. Julia Fox, in her feature debut, drew considerable attention alongside a cameo-heavy supporting cast that includes several NBA figures and The Weeknd playing a version of himself. A24 co-produced and distributed, continuing their run of modestly budgeted, culturally noisy releases that defined American independent cinema in the late 2010s.
The most stressful film ever. Adam Sandler reminds me alot of Al Pacino in this one and that's a big compliment. His acting is great, the entire cast actually is great. The only reason I kinda marked it down was because the writing was a little erratic. Like, I get it... they're trying to build a picture of this wheeler n dealer who's got 50 angles working at once, but adding the Weeknd into the mix just seemed like overkill. A couple of threads they could have done without and it would have given Sandler more room to act and not just be constantly moving from one panic disaster to another. The ending was absolutely fantastic. Very reminiscent of Carlito's Way for me.
Rating: ★★★★ | Year: 2019 | Watched: 2025-04-19
Where to watch (UK)
Stream: Netflix · Netflix Standard with Ads
Physical: Amazon UK
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