Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.0

Uncut Gems 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 7, 2021

Benny and Josh Safdie's "Uncut Gems" (2019) arrives on 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include audio commentary recorded by the directors, writer-editor Ronald Bronstein, and producer Sebastian Bear-McClard; new audio interview with cinematographer Darius Khondji; new program with costume designer Miyako Bellizzi; new documentary with electronic musician Daniel Lopatin; trailers; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

It's a deal.

As I followed closely the struggle of Adam Sandler’s character to stay a few steps ahead of his creditors, I found myself wondering precisely how he was able to become a big-time jeweler in New York City. How did he set up his business? And how did he build his network of contacts? Some of the numbers he is heard mentioning in his business conversations are so big yet his behavior was so erratic that I genuinely wanted to know. Was there a point in his life when he behaved like a shrewd businessman and was able to accumulate wealth rather than throw it away? And when did everything start to fall apart?

The film does not reveal anything about the past of Sandler’s character. When he steps in front of the camera he is already in deep trouble, moving large sums of money he does not have, lying to people that supposedly trust him, and cheating on his wife with a golddigger. In his fortified office, while sitting behind his desk, he behaves like a junkie who has abruptly abandoned his latest recovery plan and gone back to his old habits. It isn’t normal behavior, but no one cares. In fact, everyone else around him is just as obsessed with money and fancy objects and appearing out of sync with reality.

The point of no return is instantly recognizable, but Sandler’s character misses it completely. It is the arrival of The Big Ticket (Kevin Garnett playing himself) and his sidekick, Demany (LaKeith Stanfield), in the fortified office. Sandler’s character arranges a stupid deal with the former that allows him to walk away with a piece of rock that is supposed to be sold at an auction for well over a million bucks, but a lot goes terribly wrong and instead the angry creditors issue an ultimatum. I found this development the most disappointing in the entire film. It took this long for the creditors to begin playing hardball with someone that can’t spend an hour without uttering a lie? It is a ridiculous scenario. In the real world, he would have been offed already and his relatives forced to cover his debts.

And yet, in a rather bizarre sort of way, this ridiculous scenario made perfect sense once the obvious became painfully obvious, which was that Sandler played the classic goofy Sandler character with a slightly expanded range of mannerisms. This is why I had trouble accepting that his greedy and cheating jeweler was legit -- he was a variation of the classic goofy Sandler character placed in an atypical for him environment. I could see right through him, and the rest was meaningless. There was not a single situation where I thought that he could have been a connected jeweler in the Diamond District.

The identity and style of the film are equally unconvincing, too. Instead of being the tense drama that was scripted to be, the film is essentially one giant f-bomb factory that goes into overdrive mode almost immediately after Sandler’s character steps up in front of the camera and opens up his bag of lies. This is very, very repetitive material that quickly becomes exhausting to watch.

Daniel Lopatin’s soundtrack, arguably the film’s greatest strength, is a throwback project whose roots are located in the many wonderful ambient tunes that graced various late ‘70s and ‘80s classic thrillers. The use of synthesizers -- as well as some top-notch modern imitators -- is so impressive that this writer would not mind arguing that it is on par with some of John Carpenter and Tangerine Dream’s very best work.

*Criterion’s upcoming 4K Blu-ray release is sourced from a 4K master that was supervised and approved by writer-directors Josh and Benny Safdie. Also, it features a new Dolby Atmos audio track that was prepared exclusively for it. (The new Dolby Atmos is available on the upcoming Blu-ray release of the film as well).

Uncut Gems 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The 4K Blu-ray release of Uncut Gems is a combo pack with 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray copies of the film. Both are sourced from a 4K master that has been supervised and approved by writer-directors Josh and Benny Safdie. A separate Blu-ray release is available for pre-order here.

The screencaptures that are included with this article are from the 4K Blu-ray disc, but are downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, when you view them, you should keep in mind that they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc, including the actual color values of this content.

On my system the entire film looked quite impressive. Of course, this is hardly surprising given the fact that the film was shot with modern equipment that has the ability to produce striking visuals. For example, in darker footage -- such as the club sequence where The Weeknd is seen performing -- fine details and nuances are reproduced so well that while doing some direct comparisons with the 1080p presentation from the Blu-ray it was very difficult for me to identify significant improvements. This is how consistently strong the original material is. Additionally, on 4K Blu-ray I usually see noticeably better density levels, but here they seemed comparable to those of the 1080p presentation. The same can be said about fluidity as well. So, are there any areas where the 4K presentation excels? Yes, in the area of color reproduction, where some nuances appear to be better balanced with certain highlights. Brighter natural light and lighting choices seem to produce the most notable improvements, but there is indoor footage with more subdued artificial light where some upticks in quality are recognizable as well. On the other hand, I think that even with HDR enabled the overall color balance still remains quite similar to that of the 1080p presentation. Delineation, clarity, and depth are excellent. Image stability is outstanding. There are no encoding anomalies to report in our review.

Uncut Gems 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English Dolby Atmos. (If unable to use Dolby Atmos, your player will output Dolby TrueHD 5.1). Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

The Dolby Atmos track produces very rich and clean sound with outstanding ranges of nuances. The film has a very unusual electronic soundtrack with plenty of 'color' that is beautifully reproduced by it. In fact, this is the reason why I found some of the more subdued footage where the music enhances the atmosphere far more impressive than the mass footage where the noise and action produce bigger dynamic contrasts. Clarity is excellent, but this film has a lot of frantic talk and screaming that occasionally can make some exchanges a bit difficult to follow. There are no technical anomalies to report in our review.

Uncut Gems 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary - this audio commentary was recorded by Josh and Benny Safdie, writer-editor Ronald Bronstein, and producer Sebastian Bear-McClard in 2019. The bulk of the comments in it address the production history of Uncut Gems, the film's energy and tone, and the constantly evolving dilemmas the main protagonists faces as he attempts to stay a few steps ahead of his creditors.

BLU-RAY DISC

• Money on the Street: The Making of "Uncut Gems" - this documentary examines the production history of Uncut Gems and the creation of Adam Sandler's character. Included in it are interviews with writer-directors Josh and Benny Safdie, Adam Sandler, Idina Menzel, writer-editor Ronald Bronstein, and Kevin Garnett, amongst others. The documentary was produced in 2019. In English, not subtitled. (31 min).

• Studio Visit: Miyako Bellizzi - in this new program, costume designer Miyako Bellizzi discusses her contribution to Uncut Gems and specifically the appearance of Adam Sandler's character. The program was created in 2021. In English, not subtitled. (15 min).

• Shooting "Gems": Darius Khondji - in this new audio interview, cinematographer Darius Khondji discusses his initial encounter with Josh and Benny Safdie and thei working relationship during the production of Uncut Gems. Also, there are some interesting observations about Adam Sandler's transformation into Howard Ratner. The interview was conducted in 2021. In English, not subtitled. (14 min).

• Human Kinds: Jennifer Venditti - in this new video interview, casting director Jennifer Venditti discusses the evolution of her career and contribution to Uncut Gems. Also, there are interesting comments about Eric Bogosian, Mitchell Wenig, and Keith William Richards' performances. Also included are three audio tapes:
  
  1. Keith William Richards with Louis Anthony Arias and Tommy Kominik.
  2. Andrea Linsky.
  3. Mitchell and Stewart Wenig

• Sam Lisenco: Creating the world of "Uncut Gems" - in this new program, production designer Sam Lisenco discusses his background, chosen career path, and involvement with Uncut Gems. The program was produced in 2021. In English, not subtitled. (15 min).

• Behind the Soundtrack - in this documentary, electronic musician Daniel Lopatin (Oneohtrix Point Never) and Josh Safdie discuss the musical language that is used in Uncut Gems. There are some particularly interesting comments about the use of synthesizers. The documentary was produced by Moog Music in 2020. In English, not subtitled. (18 min).

• Extended Scenes - in English, not subtitled.
  
  1. KMH Showroom (5 min).
  2. Howard S. Apartment (5 min).
  3. The Weeknd - live performance by The Weeknd of his "The Morning" recorded at 1OAK in New York in 2019 (4 min).

• Adam Sandler and Julia Fox Screen Test - a hilarious scene from a high-end boutique that should have been left in the film. In English, not subtitled. (4 min).

• Beta Israelites: The Plight of the Ethiopian Jews - a short segment from History Channel. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• "Question & Answer" (2020) - this short film featuring Josh and Benny Safdie, Adam Sandler, Jason Bateman, and comedy writer Megan Amram was produced by A24 to play alongside Uncut Gems in its theatrical release. In English, not subtitled. (21 min).

• Goldman v Silverman (2020) - this short film features Adam Sandler and Benny Safdie as battling street performers working the tourist scene of New York's Times Square. In English, not subtitled. (7 min).

• Theatrical Trailer - original theatrical trailer for Uncut Gems. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Elara Trailer - DVD and Blu-ray trailer for Uncut Gems. In English, not subtitled. (1 min).

• Commentary - this audio commentary was recorded by Josh and Benny Safdie, writer-editor Ronald Bronstein, and producer Sebastian Bear-McClard in 2019.

• Leaflet - an illustrated leaflet featuring an essay by film critic J. Hoberman, a 2020 discussion of the film by the editorial staff of Jewish Currents magazine, and technical credits.

Uncut Gems 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I found Adam Sandler's performance in Uncut Gems very unconvincing. Contrary to what has been said and written to date, it is a variation of his previous character work that looks and feels very awkward in it. Also, the chaos that is supposed to sustain the high tension is so overcooked that it makes a lot of the crucial material in the film appear quite amateurish. This is unfortunate because Daniel Lopatin's soundtrack is fantastic and could have been the key piece in a truly special thriller. If your experience with the film has been completely different and you have been waiting to pick up a definitive release of it for your library, you should plan to grab this upcoming 4K Blu-ray release from Criterion. It offers a very solid technical presentation of the film as well as large selection of exclusive new and archival bonus features. RECOMMENDED only to the fans.