This is one of those films where I believe Benny and Josh Safdie have made their mark as it is the best film they have ever directed. Uncut Gems is a film which combines the genres of crime, drama and mystery into a thriller that gets out of control for the star of the movie, Adam Sandler. For Sandler, this is definitely his best film ever. Of course, he is known to be someone funny and at times has performed in some dark comedies as well as dramas.   However, this one takes his career to a whole new level due to his acting, characterization, and overall performance. The film is vivid with lies and tension that hold the audience on the edge of their seats in curiosity continuously asking themselves how ugly can these conflicts get?

Adam Sandler is Howard Ratner. Ratner is a cynical, lethal, and opinionated.  He is in a multitude of binds with a world of financial problems which involve making and also losing tons of money from numerous deals he placed and has in place. However, he goes above and beyond to get as rich and maintain his lifestyle.  Ratner’s makes many risky decisions and this results in many dangerous scenarios. Ratner is a New York jeweler who comes across a gem that is from Ethiopia which he tries to sell to NBA player, Kevin Garnett. Garnett is obsessed with this item, as he believes that it will bring him luck to win.  Ratner places a high-stakes bet for Garnett’s Celtics to win and for Ratner to score big. Prior to the game though, Ratner still has a whole range of money problems that continue to follow him, along with family tensions, and he begins to struggle to keep his attitude intact. This leads to Ratner’s family being at risk, mob members following him, and people who he has bad deals with wanting to destroy Ratner. Ratner takes all the risk in hopes the gem is going to make Garnett win so he can pay off his debts and return to his lavish lifestyle.

For Sandler, who is Jewish, he plays his role in Uncut Gems amazingly well. He has the nerdy glasses, the punk haircut, the gang-type clothing, and a thick New York accent that he uses throughout the film to express his anger and frustration when his conflicts begin to get out of hand. Sandler delivers a knockout performance playing Howard Ratner. What I found intriguing with Uncut Gems was how Sandler can hold in his anger although you could tell he was going to explode or make another bad decision that opens even more ugly doors. Sandler starts to let the first world problems spiral out of control.  The movie introduced us to all the problems he had going on, and what other problems he created, or was tempted to create. When something goes awry, he loses it easily. That is what makes Uncut Gems the perfect vehicle for Sandler’s best performance of his career. I have never seen him be able to play someone that can get so violent and distraught, and it all felt so real.

For the Safdie Brothers, this takes their previous movie Good Time (2017) to a whole different level. That film geared on one man trying to get his brother out of jail. Uncut Gems gears on Ratner trying to get away from all his irreparable problems, but also wanting to make loads of money from high-stake bets. I find the Safdie Brothers are talented at creating suspenseful movies with endings that are unexpected and brilliant. They had a brilliant, but unexpected ending with Good Time, and they have accomplished the same thing with Uncut Gems. There are moments in Uncut Gems where viewers will feel that there is light at the end of the tunnel for Ratner, but there are twists that are unforeseen. Those twists had me asking myself more than once, “What just happened?” Uncut Gems will leave its audience in astonishment as it binds it all together.

Uncut Gems is a knockout performance that is also intense. However, the directing is astonishing, the screenplay is structured and luminous, and the suspense does not end. One conflict is either solved, failed, or put on hold, and then another scenario arises that is another mess for Ratner to try to figure out in a limited amount of time. The problem is the excuses that Ratner makes also have warnings with consequences and they begin to become increasingly embarrassing and risky. Experience this thriller about a con artist who cares about money, deals, and being rich and see what the outcomes of his poor decisions lead to. It is an audacious experience that I found to be one of the best films of the year. I can see Oscar buzz for Uncut Gems, and I am giving this movie four stars.

When it comes movies about teenagers trying to meet their goals and fulfill their parent’s expectations with accomplishments athletically and academically, Trey Edward Shults’s Waves is a deep and haunting experience. The movie is filled with scenarios of successes, disappointments, failures, irreparable consequences, and the life after a major tragic event. Kelvin Harrison Jr. is the lead, and this is one of his most memorable movie experiences. While I thought his performance in Luce this year was his best, his performance in Waves tops it. The film also stars Taylor Russell, Renee Elise Goldsberry, Sterling K. Brown, Alexa Demie, and Lucas Hedges. They all deliver knockout performances that makes Waves a narrative gem that I believe is one of the best films of the year. This engaging film is about a family that goes through hard stages in life and tries to navigate after harsh events have occurred.

The film takes place in South Florida and Kelvin Harrison Jr. plays Tyler. Tyler is athletic, academically inclined and has a decent set of peers.  His demanding father, Ronald (Sterling K. Brown), wants Tyler to push himself above his limits athletically with wrestling. Tyler is already in the mind-set that his life is going well and that he can deal with some distractions. Those distractions, however, cause his life to start to go down-hill. He realizes that he has some physical health issues so he should not participate in athletic events. However, he tries to still do so by experimenting with pills and all kinds of supplements to help his body be able to handle the impact of his sport. This is a bad idea and causes Tyler to be severely injured.  Still, he still has the chance to do well academically, but he starts to fall apart, because sports and exercise have been his life.

Tyler believes at one point that his life is still solid, but then he gets to a point where his world is rocky. He finds out that the girl he is dating is pregnant. And, since Tyler has already been drinking and experimenting with drugs, his attitude and anger spiral out of control and cause him to make increasingly poor decisions. His sister, Emily (Taylor Russell), realizes he is going to get himself in trouble, but she does not do much to stop him. His stepmom, Catharine (Renee Elise Goldsberry), loses her ability to prevent Tyler from doing harmful behaviors because he is already out of control. Unfortunately, Tyler does something that carries heavy criminal charges and puts him in jail for a long time. This impacts Emily because she feels her social life is going to be negatively impacted given her brother is a criminal and lots people in their school and neighborhood know what he has done to put himself in jail.

Years later, the film gears on Emily and her new relationship with her new boyfriend, Luke (Lucas Hedges). She starts to grow a close relationship with him because they are both introverted. They begin to bond and share their past experiences of why they remain quiet and do not come out of their shells. In those moments of connection and disconnection, Waves will leave viewers in tears. Slowly, Emily begins to realize that despite what her reputation may be (based on her brother’s actions), there is still good in the world and people do care. She even opens up about the issue with her dad and stepmom causing them to realize that they can still be happy if they look at what qualities they have to offer the world. Waves is one of those movies that is poetic because the message is how to live life after tragic events and how to be thankful for what there is in the world in the good times and the bad. Tyler may have messed up, but does that mean his family cannot love him? Does Emily have to remain a ghost the rest of her life? Can Emily’s father be a good role model to Emily? The film has many questions as well as answers. It is sad in some moments, but also quite uplifting.

I am giving Waves four stars, because the film defines what life can be after something unforgiveable.   It also shows that resentment and hate are not the answer. The answer is to accept and move on (over time, but positively). I loved this movie and even cried during a few scenes. I was looking for resolutions where there is hope, and Waves offered a lot of those resolutions. The message is to never give up. Do not miss Waves.

As the final movie in the Star Wars franchise, I found The Rise of Skywalker to be decent to an extent. However, the film is not perfect. The Rise of Skywalker starts with many cool battle scenes, leaves viewers with some unanswered questions, and looks back at prior issues from The Last Jedi (2017). Director, J.J. Abrams did what he could to best wrap things up. Nevertheless, I did not find the movie that monumental although still enjoyable. The characters we love ranging from Leia Organa (played by Carrie Fisher), Luke Skywalker (played by Mark Hamill), Kylo Ren (played by Adam Driver), Rey (played by Daisy Ridley), Finn (played by John Boyega), Poe Dameron (played by Oscar Isaac), C-3PO (played by Anthony Daniels), Chewbacca (played by Joonas Suotamo), and Lando Calrissian (played by Billy Dee Williams), all come together to conclude the saga. Now, like I said the film is not horrible, it is just not all that amazing.

The plot of this Star Wars movie centers around the surviving Resistance.  They come up front towards the First Order that must come through to complete the saga. This means that Rey is on a mission to fulfill her task of figuring out who is the true Jedi. The action in the movie is cool, yet it goes off course periodically and is just not all that structured. Yes, I believe the previous Star Wars movie had too many scenes with talking a lot between the characters.  However, in that case it gave fans ideas about the next conflicts for the saga.  In this case, it seems to jump into the conflicts without being clear.

What I did enjoy most about the movie was the realization that Kylo Ren came upon himself along with Rey, Finn, and Poe Dameron. My issue was that their problems did not seem to fit the purpose of the film which was trying to fulfill the saga. Yes, the saga is wrapped up, but not in a very memorable way. I found myself wondering if this movie was rushed. To an extent it was, but I believe that the action took place first, so fans could get excited.  Excitement is great, but fans also like to know the background story so they can understand why specific scenes are featured. I didn’t think the conclusions reached throughout the movie made that much sense which was a disappointment.

Overall, for this Star Wars movie I am at a solid two stars. I had high expectations and this one did not deliver. Given Disney plays a big part in making Star Wars movies, they will obviously have more ideas to in the future and are bound to make numerous reboots. If fans are die-hard, then this movie must be seen.  Viewers just need to adjust their expectations and not expect spellbinding elements that Star Wars is known for.