DO NOT CROSS HERE IF SPOILERS OFFEND
DO NOT CROSS HERE IF SPOILERS OFFEND
DO NOT CROSS H
END
WA R N I N G!
I L E R S! S P O I L E R S! S P O I L E R S! S P O I L E
HOWARD GETS
STRIPPED
3
Alex Godfrey:Having already disgraced himself
by ditching his daughter’s school play to confront
the heavies waiting for him, Howard goes for
a classic arm bite, then legs it out of the place,
only to be accosted and bundled into a car.
As Howard’s unscrupulous and menacing loan
shark brother-in-law Arno (Eric Bogosian) shows
his true colours, Howard is forced to admit he’s
made a bet with the cash he owes. Howard is
stripped to his boxer shorts for his fuck-up and,
dispatched into his own car boot, he is humiliated
into phoning his already dismayed wife to come
and rescue him. A mere 48 minutes into the film,
things seem to have reached a low. Alas, though,
for Howard, this is as good as it gets.Left: Howard
feels the heat
from loan shark
brother-in-law
Arno (Eric
Bogosian)
and assorted
heavies.witnessing Howard’s world crumble around
him verges on the unwatchable — the Safdies
shoot it like an action scene, picking the angles
that would make it feel most catastrophic. When
the hammer comes down, Howard visibly gulps
as his downward spiral plummets yet further into
disaster, and you feel that particular brand of
dread that occurs when something truly awful
happens in your life. That is what the Safdies
create for us. The sadistic bastards.5 THE AUCTION DISASTER
Alex Godfrey: As unconventional as Uncut
Gems might be, it is classical storytelling, and
this, the act two climax, is where all seems lost.
Howard is his own worst enemy at the best of
times but here he outdoes himself, persuading
his father-in-law Gooey (Judd Hirsch) to keep
jacking up the bids on the opal until Garnett
goes for $250,000 (“KG’s gonna buy it, it’s not
a problem”). Naturally, it backfi res, Gooey and
Howard getting lumbered with $190,000, and6 HOWARD’S FATE
Alex Godfrey: Uncut Gems’
climactic sequence — in which
Howard, having seemingly got
himself into a good situation at
last, takes his craziest risk yet
— is a masterclass in tension.
As much as you’re at your wits’
end with Howard, you do want
him to win, and what happens
next is a devastating gut-punch:
somehow, over the preceding
two hours we’ve fallen in
love with this scoundrel. With
Garnett winning the game,
even Arno looks happy asHoward snatches victory from
the jaws of defeat — and is
instantly murdered for being
a bit of a prick. Shot in the
face by the incensed heavy
(Keith Williams Richards) who
Howard’s had locked in his
store’s mantrap throughout
the game, it’s one of the biggest
movie shocks in years. Poor
Howard — the loveable idiot.
Uncut Gems is a two-hour
panic attack, but this moment
at the end of it all is a heart
attack. For all of us.4 JOHN AMOS
Nick de Semlyen:One random scene reveals that
Howard’s sneaky second pad is adjacent to the
home ofComing To Americastar John Amos.It’s a nice touch for two reasons. One: that film
is, likeUncut Gems, the tale of a love-struck
fool in New York. Two: Amos was meant
to work with Sandler 24 years ago,
onHappy Gilmore. They now
get their moment.Getty ImagesUPLOADED BY "What's News" vk.com/wsnws TELEGRAM: t.me/whatsnws