Uncut Gems is a portrait of a man addicted to gambling, who makes one bad decision after another; who tries to reduce the consequences of his last bad decision by making yet another bad decision. His face is a map of stress, he owes money to everyone in the world, he gets beat up when his lies can’t buy him a little more time, his marriage is falling apart. Locked naked in the trunk of his car you’d think would be a turning point, an opportunity to hit pause and reassess his life, but he just can’t.
Adam Sandler has grown up; no more Billy Madison sitting at a child’s desk pretending to be a first grader. Gems is the first Sandler movie I have enjoyed. His character is completely flawed, yet you are rooting for him to win which is why the ending is totally unsatisfying. Word to the wise: Don’t marry an addict, you can’t fix/change them.