'Uncut Gems' Shows the Many Facets of Adam Sandler Javascript must be enabled to use this site. Please enable Javascript in your browser and try again. × Search search POPULAR SEARCHES SUGGESTED LINKS Join AARP for just $9 per year when you sign up for a 5-year term. Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. Leaving AARP.org Website You are now leaving AARP.org and going to a website that is not operated by AARP. A different privacy policy and terms of service will apply. Close
Uncut Gems Funnyman Adam Sandler Comes of Age as a Dramatic Actor
In a pulse-pounding crime thriller a gambler gets a million-dollar rock if the bad guys don t get him first
A24 Rating: R Run time: 2 hour 14 minutes Stars: Adam Sandler, Eric Bogosian, Idina Menzel, Julia Fox, Kevin Garnett Directors: Josh and Bennie Safdie I never understood why anyone thought Adam Sandler, 53, was so funny that viewers spent $4 billion to see his comedies. That nasal fake-child voice is excruciatingly grating. But as a dramatic actor, he's been good for years, and he's never been as impressive as he is as the New York jeweler, gambler, dreamer and self-defeating buffoon Howard Ratner in Uncut Gems. His office is so crummy the door keeps getting stuck, which comes in handy when angry mob types visit to inquire about Howard's ever-proliferating debts and find themselves trapped behind the glass, shouting threats. Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. Howard has more than mobsters to fret about. His wife (Idina Menzel, 48) calls him “the most annoying person I have ever met. I hate being with you, I hate looking at you, and if I had my way, I would never see you again.” She has a point, though for some reason Howard's dishy mistress (Julia Fox) loves him anyhow — not that she'll pass up the flattering opportunity to get pawed behind closed doors by the rap star The Weeknd, provoking Howard's hypocritical jealousy. Still, appallingly sleazy as he is, Howard is a fool who has his charms. Even his annoying, keening voice is redeemed by his clueless kindliness — and in the context of a character we care about, it's funnier than ever. Howard's heart is as sweet as his mind is unwisely imaginative, and his ambition is quenchless. When he loses a sports bet, does he give up? No! He pawns something someone loaned him and makes another bet to cover it. Then another to cover that, robbing Peter (and as many others as necessary) to pay Paul. Flowers & Gifts 25% off sitewide and 30% off select items See more Flowers & Gifts offers > But his acquaintance Kevin Garnett, the pro basketball player (played effortlessly well by the real Garnett), also has passionate feelings for the gemstone in question, and tries to buy it for big bucks before the auction. He needs it for luck on the court. Howard won't sell it for less than his wild-eyed hopes, but he's crazy enough to let Garnett borrow it for a few days, which puts him under pressure from the auctioneers. And as if that weren't enough, his sinister brother-in-law (the brilliant Eric Bogosian, 66) is demanding the money Howard owes him, right now — though he, too, seems wowed by Howard's astounding boldness in reaching for his dream. Besides, Howard tries to be the best family man he can. He dutifully attends his daughter's school play. When he spots a couple of criminals in the audience who may want him dead and he has to flee, is that Howard's fault? If Preston Sturges, master of rapid-fire comic dialogue, had written Abel Ferrara's gritty Bad Lieutenant while cribbing from 's Mean Streets, it wouldn't be any better than this irresistible crime caper flick. And if Sandler doesn't land an Oscar nomination for this, he was robbed. MORE FROM AARP AARP NEWSLETTERS %{ newsLetterPromoText }% %{ description }% Subscribe AARP VALUE & MEMBER BENEFITS See more Health & Wellness offers > See more Flights & Vacation Packages offers > See more Finances offers > See more Health & Wellness offers > SAVE MONEY WITH THESE LIMITED-TIME OFFERS