Uncut Gems has all the possible traits a Safdie Brothers fan could ever hanker after. Anxiety told through hand-held execution and blabbering New-York-ian accents. Lots and lots of aggressive fighting and punching. A sturdy score with electronic synths blasting to a mesmerizing effect. But, underneath the silk-stocking display of cinematic genius that the brothers have so squarely carried out here, there’s a distraught yet beautiful meaning to all the madness. Uncut Gems is a persuasive piece of poetry that’s experience is above the value of any costly, material trinket of jewelry out there.
Unlike the Safdies’ always-on-the-run previous feature Good Time, the pacing has seemed to lighten down in Uncut Gems. It’s evident that the brothers wanted to make a movie that would more personally dissect its main lead. The casual structure, chaotic examination of a family life, and piercingly bewitching editing causes the Safdies’ newest jab at the world of tension-driven motion pictures to appear uncanny. The color pallet here isn’t as nearly neon-heavy as Good Time, and it would appear that, ultimately, the two fine directors wanted to make a plainer-looking movie to appeal to a larger mass. In spite of this, the mainstream alteration doesn’t quite detract us long-time fans from the film’s more crucial quality traits.
Josh and Benny Safdie’s sixth feature-length is a complicatedly engineered work of human examination, completely elevated by Adam Sandler’s hard-working yet narcissistic character. If we were to closely inspect the many audacious loops and vibrant units of Uncut Gems presentation, it would more than likely prove to us that living life dangerously on the edge may never get you to that divine place where everything in life finally makes sense.
Lastly: The Weeknd and Adam Sandler. That’s all you need to know.
Verdict: A-
“Uncut Gems” is now playing in select theaters in Los Angeles and New York, and will be released in most theaters on December 20, 2019.
Burning the Celluloid 
Published by