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Ultra HD : Must Own
Ranking:
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Release Date: November 23rd, 2021 Movie Release Year: 2019

Uncut Gems 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray - The Criterion Collection

Overview -

Uncut Gems is the most suspenseful movie in a long time and it doesn't have even one explosion or car chase. Leave it to the Safdie brothers to create chaos inside the world of diamond selling in New York with a stunning performance from Adam Sandler that will be remembered forever. Criterion takes this culturally significant and essential film to 4K and Blu-ray with a stellar 4K image with Dolby Vision and an excellent Dolby Atmos audio track. The older bonus features have been imported over here and a ton of new material made for this release. MUST-OWN!

 

This jolt of pure cinematic adrenaline affirmed directors Josh and Benny Safdie as heirs to the gritty, heightened realism of Martin Scorsese and John Cassavetes. Adam Sandler delivers an almost maniacally embodied performance as Howard Ratner, a fast-talking New York jeweler and gambler in relentless pursuit of the next big score. When he comes into possession of a rare opal, it seems Howard’s ship has finally come in—as long as he can stay one step ahead of a wife (Idina Menzel) who hates him, a mistress (Julia Fox) who can’t quit him, and a frenzy of loan sharks and hit men closing in on him. Wrapping a vivid look at the old-school Jewish world of Manhattan’s Diamond District within a kinetic thriller, Uncut Gems gives us one of the great characters in modern cinema: a tragic hero of competing compulsions on a shoot-the-moon quest to transcend his destiny. 

OVERALL:
Must Own
Rating Breakdown
STORY
VIDEO
AUDIO
SPECIAL FEATURES
Tech Specs & Release Details
Technical Specs:
4K Ultra HD Blu-ray + Blu-ray
Video Resolution/Codec:
Dolby Vision HDR / HDR10
Length:
135
Aspect Ratio(s):
2.39:1
Audio Formats:
Dolby Atmos
Release Date:
November 23rd, 2021

Storyline: Our Reviewer's Take

Ranking:

A New York diamond district dealer with a severe gambling problem snowballs into a series of violent and suspenseful situations in the new Safdie brothers movie Uncut Gems, starring a phenomenal Adam Sandler in a role like you’ve never seen him in before. Don’t get this man another comedy special, get this man the Oscar right now for his performance as Howard Ratner, the most irritating business owner in the world. This film is a surprise punch that might have the most intense sequences of the decade.

The Safdie brothers don’t make movies for families to enjoy on some happy-go-lucky level. That’s evident with their film Good Time. And even though Uncut Gems centers around a big family, it’s nothing but constant obnoxious yelling at one another, maniacal schemes to stay on top, and sweat-inducing characters who are constantly cursing at everyone and everything. It can be darkly funny and straight-up terrifying at times as the Safdie brothers weave this raving lunatic of a character through the dirty life of an addicted gambler and all the pros and cons that come with that way of living as we see in one scene where Adam Sandler is out on a normal night with his family watching his daughter perform in a school play, but then ends up naked in the trunk of a car.

For the full movie review...CLICK HERE!

 

Vital Disc Stats: The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray
Uncut Gems sells its way to 4K + Blu-ray via the amazing Criterion Collection. The two discs are housed inside a hard cardboard/plastic case with a cardboard sleeve. The artwork features a glistening glamour shot of Adam Sandler in character on the sleeve. The case itself features the closeup of the diamond-studded Furbee from the movie. The criterion booklet inside acts as a jewelry catalog, but also features images and information on the movie. 

 

Video Review

Ranking:

Uncut Gems comes with an utterly fantastic looking 2160p UHD 4K image from Criterion. According to the booklet inside, this image is in its original aspect ratio of 2.39:1, where the digital transfer was created in Dolby Vision HDR 4K resolution from the original 35mm camera negative and supervised by the Safdie brothers. The results are amazing here and are a definitive upgrade from its original Blu-ray release a couple of years ago.

The color palette in 4K is richer and bolder with natural-looking, urban colors of the silver city. A cooler and steel-like image is captured here in the heart of Manhattan where grays, silvers, misty blues, and stone-like colors run rampant in the background. Even Howard's shop utilizes these colors with the added shades of brown and those glistening spectral colors of the diamonds. Other colors inside the school auditorium give way to primary colors that showcase shades of purple, red, and orange lighting and costumes. At the nightclub and casino, bigger neon colors pop out brightly as well which results in better detail as well. The basketball games have those hardwood colors on the floors with bright stadium lighting that accentuate players' uniforms and the crowd in the stands. The Dolby Vision and HDR allow for the many nuanced shades of coloring in the darker sequences to stand out nicely. Black levels are deep and inky in the nighttime scenes that don't bleed over or contain murky shadows. The skin tones are also natural as well.

The detail is very sharp and vivid with excellent closeups that include facial pores, individual hairs on the actor's heads and faces, along with beads of sweat, makeup blemishes, moles, and other textures in the wardrobe - all of which look amazing. Wider shots of the city buildings look impressive with detail and never soft. The jewelry reveals its extreme textures very nicely as well. This is a wonderful looking 4K transfer from Criterion and is a big step up from the 1080p HD version.

 

Audio Review

Ranking:

This release comes with a chaotic and excellent Dolby Atmos track. For those unable to incorporate the Atmos mix, a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 audio option will play out.

The sound effects are loud, robust, and boisterous from start to finish. The dynamic ambient noises of the bustling metropolis that is New York City sounds busy and great. Cars honking, engines revving, tires screeching, and people walking and yelling across the street all make up the exterior shots of this movie. It's a very good and immersive ambient track that pours through the surround sound speakers. The basketball games all give way to the natural reverb and acoustics of a stadium and court with a crowd cheering.

The club sequence has cocktail glasses clinking together with a strong amount of bass that brings in the low end with a great rumble. The fast-talking characters inside the jewelry shops always bring the center speaker to the spotlight with amazing dialogue that is clean, clear, and easy to follow. The score always adds to the high amount of suspense in each scene as well. Height speakers mainly turn on with music and when at basketball games. This is an amazing and frenetic-sounding audio track that is unforgettable. There are no audio issues to speak of here.

Special Features

Ranking:

There are about 161 minutes of bonus features included here. Everything besides the commentary track is set on the Blu-ray Disc of the set. The lone bonus feature from the previous release has been imported over with all the new Criterion extras that feature everyone. Sadly there are no new interviews with Julia or Adam. Still, these are some amazing extra and are all worth watching.

4K Ultra HD Blu-ray

  • Audio Commentary - The Safdie brothers, writer and editor Ronald Bronstein, and producer Sebastian Bear-McClard all deliver a fun commentary track here that was recorded back in 2019. Topics included the origins of the story, the real-life people these characters are based on, the on-location production, the tone and suspense of the film, and working with Sandler are all discussed. The energy here is fantastic and is worth the listen.

Blu-ray Disc One

  • Money On The Street: The Making of Uncut Gems (HD, 31 Mins.) - This is a collection of cast and crew interviews, along with some on-set footage on the making of the film and was the only extra that was imported over from its original release.
  • Studio Visit: Miyako Bellizzi (HD, 15 Mins.) - The costume designer of the film talks about her inspirations and directions in regard to the wardrobe of the film and how she came up with all the ideas.
  • Shooting Gems: Darius Khondji (HD, 14 Mins.) - An audio interview with the cinematographer of the movie where he talks about meeting the Safdie brothers, Sandler, and working together on how the movie should look. He also talks about the character of Howard quite a bit.
  • Human Kinds: Jennifer Venditti (HD, 16 Mins.) - The casting director tells her tale of the business, working on other films, and then segways into this movie on how she cast the perfect actors. Also included here are three audio interviews with various people discussing the casting process.
  • Sam Lisenco: Creating the World of Uncut Gems (HD, 15 Mins.) - The production designer details his past work, how he got into the business, and working with every on this particular movie.
  • Behind The Soundtrack (HD,18 Mins.) - The musician of the film and Josh Safdie talk about how the music was incorporated and made for the film and coincided with the characters and its intense tone. They also discuss how many synths were used for the score here.
  • Extended Scenes (HD, 14 Mins.) - There are three extended scenes here, each being about five minutes in length. All of these are worth watching and could have been left in the movie.
  • Screen Test (HD, 4 Mins.) - Adam Sandler and Julia Fox screen test a hilarious scene where Howard talks her into getting a dress she doesn't want. It's a fantastic look and foreshadowing of their relationship.
  • Beta Israelites: The Plight of the Ethiopian Jews (HD, 2 Mins.) - A very brief look at this culture and part of the world from the History Channel.
  • Question and Answer (HD, 21 Mins.) - A truly funny prank where the Safdie brothers, Sandler, and Jason Bateman end up eating breakfast out in Los Angeles where everyone tricks Sandler into answering questions about the movie. Comedy legend Megan Amram wrote and stars in this segment as well.
  • Goldman v Silverman (HD, 7 Mins.) - A fun short film that features Benny Safdie and Sandler incognito as street performers in Times Square who battle it out over territory.
  • Trailers (HD, 4 Mins.) - Trailers for the film and Blu-ray.
  • Criterion Booklet - One of the BEST Criterion booklets ever made is here that features information about the movie, tech specs, essays and interviews with the cast and crew, and of course a catalog for jewelry and order forms.

Final Thoughts

Uncut Gems is a striking, fantastic thrill ride that even though there aren't any real blow-em-up action beats, has the most tension and suspense out of any movie of recent memory. This film will literally cause the sweat pores to unleash the waterworks, all while sitting down and watching a movie with excellent performances from Sandler and Fox. Criterion has knocked it out of the park with this 4K release that has an excellent-looking image, an exquisite sounding Dolby Atmos track, and some truly wonderful and entertaining bonus features. MUST-OWN!