Review of Uncut Gems

"His character was unlikable." "It's too loud." "It's tiring/stressful to watch." I fail to see anything of value in any of these critiques. If anything it proves that the director got exactly the response he wanted. It was tiring and loud and stressful and even now after watching it my blood pressure is high and my neck is taught with nerves, but that's literally the point. Not every film has to center on a conventionally attractive hero progressing towards his goal after a setback and consequently fixing whatever romantic issues they had. One of the moments that made me love this film even more was Howey's attempt to reconcile with his wife at Passover. For just a moment, they roped me into believing that this could be the classic Sandler movie turning point, where he grows as a person in some way and his significant other takes him back. He didn't get this chance here and I love the director for that. Instead of the generic turn around story, we got to see a natural end to his destructive tendencies. It may not be the feel good experience you went to the movies for, but that doesn't make it bad. I think watching at home is a good choice though. I had to take a break in the middle of the film, and that likely made all the difference in my ability to enjoy it.