100% on Rotten Tomatoes? This has to be a sign of the apocalypse…
It isn’t as if every single one of Adam Sandler’s movies has been terrible.
Some of them (Happy Gilmore) were hated by critics but loved by audiences, some of them (Punch-Drunk Love) were loved by critics but nobody saw them, and there were the rare few (The Wedding Singer) that were loved by critics and audiences alike.
But, let us be fair, his recent slate – especially the majority of his Netflix output such as The Ridiculous Six, Murder Mystery, The Do-Over, and The Week Of – has been, frankly, terrible.
So when word arrived that his new movie Uncut Gems wasn’t just good, but reportedly one of the best movies of the year, we had to sit up and take notice.
It premiered at the Telluride Film Festival over the weekend, and it currently stands tall with 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. Here are just a handful of quotes from some of those reviews:
“If Uncut Gems leaves people rattled, disoriented, grasping for clarity in the chaos of one man’s hectic routine, that all speaks to the sheer precision of a visionary achievement in full control.” – Indiewire
“Uncut Gems is an insane ride with no respite that will grind your senses down to their last nerve.” – The Playlist
“Uncut Gems feels like being locked inside the pinwheeling brain of a lunatic for more than two hours – and guess what: It’s a gas!” – Variety
“[Sandler], juiced up with an awful mustache and a personal style befitting his awful merchandise, unleashes untold reserves of mania and panic.” – Vanity Fair
None of those sound like reviews for an Adam Sandler movie, do they?
Well, maybe that is because Uncut Gems doesn’t sound like an Adam Sandler movie.
Directed and co-written by the Safdie Brothers (the folk behind the equally surprisingly brilliant Good Time, which is on Netflix right now and needs to be seen), the movie tells the story of a a charismatic New York City jeweller (that’ll be Sandler), who is always on the lookout for the next big score.
When he makes a series of high-stakes bets that could lead to the windfall of a lifetime, Howard must perform a precarious high-wire act, balancing business, family, and encroaching adversaries on all sides, in his relentless pursuit of the ultimate win.
No trailer to show yet, but definitely one to keep an eye out for when it arrives.
Uncut Gems is released in the US on Christmas Day this year, so we should expect to see it over here in early 2020.
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