Amsterdam

Amsterdam

In the 1930s, three friends—a doctor, a nurse, and an attorney—witness a murder, become suspects themselves and uncover one of the most outrageous plots in North American history.

  • Released: 2022-11-04
  • Runtime: 120 minutes
  • Genre: Crime, Drama, Thrillers
  • Stars: Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Rami Malek, Zoe Saldaña, Anya Taylor-Joy, Robert De Niro, Michael Shannon, Andrea Riseborough, Alessandro Nivola, Timothy Olyphant, Taylor Swift, Matthias Schoenaerts, Chris Rock, Mike Myers, Leland Orser, Beth Grant, Christopher Gehrman, Shiree Nelson, Tom Irwin, David Babbitt, Mike Azevedo, Martin Harris, Christopher Kager, Donovan Hurst, Jarrett Johnson, Kawan DeBose, Deon Sams, Mel Fair, Vaughn Page, Bonnie Hellman, Max Perlich, Jessica Drake, Ed Begley Jr., Colleen Camp, Gabé Doppelt, Lauren Shaw, Brandon Davis, Casey Biggs, Dey Young, Sean Avery, Gigi Bermingham, André Tardieu, Casey Graf, Rebecca Wisocky, Daniel Riordan, Steven Hack, Floyd Armstrong, Leonard A. Tucker Jr., Baxter Humby, Richie Harrington, John Pirkis, Shedell, Kindsey Vaughn, Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini
  • Director: David O. Russell
 Comments
  • Maverick1962 - 3 June 2024
    Underrated comedy/drama
    I must be one of the few who thought Amsterdam is a great movie. I was hooked from the beginning and never lost interest. The story, which I can see is similar in tone to what's happening in Britain in 2024, carries an important message. Don't let the selfish elite grind down the poorer section of society or hoodwink us into believing their way is the right way.

    A plot is hatched to replace Roosevelt, the democratically elected leader of the United States by a group of the elite who want to take over the world.

    Three friends try to combat this through a comical series of incidents, although some dramatic scenes are necessary too. Beautifully constructed in my view, with outstanding 1930's costumes and scenery, splendid cinematography and stellar acting. The cast reminded me of those movies when I was a kid, like Around The World in 80 Days when another A list actor would appear every 15 minutes. The cast led by Christian Bale, Margot Robbie and John David Washington are the three friends who try to stop the plot. They are joined by Robert De Niro, Remi Malik, Anya Taylor-Joy, Michael Shannon, Mike Myers, Andrea Riseborough, Matthias Schonearts, Timothy Olyphant, Chris Rock and Taylor Swift who turns in a decent acting performance. I can't say I'm a fan of her music but as an actress she could do well.

    The only actor who I thought didn't fare well was John David Washington who seemed to lack chemistry with the others. I think he should have swapped places with Chris Rock who would have given the part a lighter touch.

    Christian Bale gives another in depth character acting performance. Every quirky turn or thrust of his head is fascinating to watch. It's a shame this movie bombed at the box office as I thoroughly enjoyed it, found it easy enough to follow and could hear all the dialogue for a change and Margot Robbie is so beautiful to look at she is the ultimate glamorous movie star of the moment, today's Grace Kelly or Marilyn Monroe.
  • toroandbruin - 28 January 2024
    Good Try But No Cigar
    This was a really crazy movie. Good actors. Colorful characters. Interesting post WWI and roaring '20's world. Based on some actual happenings. Lots of action. The problem? It was so crazy and frantic that I never actually became engaged with any of the characters or the overall plot.

    It wasn't a totally terrible film. I did watch until the end. It just wouldn't be my first choice if I were recommending something to watch this evening. And that's a pity because along with the madcap twists there was a real message which could be applicable to our society, today.

    I'm not sure how I would go about fixing this. I don't think slowing the pace would be appropriate. Adding more "humanizing" dialog might help.
  • NewForestWalker - 30 December 2023
    Quite possibly my film of the year
    Strange that on the 30th December I watch a film I had not heard of before and that I am trying hard to think of a better film this year!

    Essentially the story of three friends, Christian Bale (Oscar worthy IMO), Margot Robbie who shows yet more depth to her acting and John David Washington who does a Stella job as the last of the trio of central characters who meet up during WWI and then the film unfolds. I mention them as the central characters versus the main protagonists as they are supported by no less than Taylor Swift, Robert De Nero, Zoe Saldana, Robbie Malek, Mike Myers and more.

    At the end I was left thinking I have seen a beautifully filmed, exceptionally well acted, well told story (which was apparently mostly true). Sure it is not going to be for everyone but if you are a fan of cinema, of wonderful acting, of a good plot, put aside a couple of hours and try this film and bask in Christian Bale being Columbo (deliberate or not)
  • Aregie - 11 January 2023
    It's got HEART
    I've grown so tired of Hollywood and its predictable plot lines and characters, and gratuitous action, romance, sex and violence.

    This was a breath of fresh air, delivered with style and beauty and HEART, and some of the most engaging, thoughtful dialogue I've heard in some time. It kept me glued to the screen, and it truly made me laugh and cry out loud.

    I am sorry for those who don't "get" it. But it's a work that everyone who contributed to this piece can be incredibly proud of.

    It's definitely on my top ten list for the year, and I am genuinely shocked that it has received some low-star reviews.
  • boomansreviews - 6 January 2023
    Amsterdam Review
    Booman Reivews on Youtube for the video review

    Amsterdam is the newest film by David O Russell, and in In this outing, he depicts a critical period in United States history, to be more specific, and the story is brought to life by a crazy lineup of cast members. We have Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, Anya Taylor Joy, John David Washington, Chris Rock, and so many more that I don't even want to say because it almost becomes a game seeing how many people are in this film, even better every cast member performs excellently with the Highlight being Christian Bale, in my opinion, the man transforms with every role, and Amsterdam is no exception the film follows Bale's character and his companions, played by John David Washington and Margot Robbie, the trio finds themselves unintentionally wrapped up in the Colossal plot that involves the United States government during the early 30s, and I have to say David O. Russell did a fantastic job writing this film, along with directing it; the First Act was a bit slow, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't concerned about where this was all going, but the 30-minute mark But The Narrative gains focus in the following acts, and the whole thing amounts to a compelling mystery plot that kept me engaged until the end I was drawn into this film, but I did have some Hang-Ups in the past I have felt David O. Russell's films are a little indulgent regarding the dialogue in the cinematography, and I felt this way here. It's not that the cinematography or dialogue is terrible. A lot of it is great, but I feel like some shots and conversations are a little bit more prolonged than they need to be. I understand why it would be hard to cut a scene short when you have such unique sets and costumes designed to show off, but I felt like a bit of fat could have been trimmed off this film to make it a much tighter experience. That being said, I ended up enjoying this film, and it sparked my interest in a historical event I was not familiar with before and that's never a bad thing. I recommend seeing Amsterdam, but it's not something you need to run out to the theaters to see. If you catch this one a little later, you wouldn't be missing out on too much, though be sure you see it. A lot of passion comes through the screen when watching, which is hard not to respect, and who knows, you may just be as surprised as I was at such a close call in the history books.
  • sam-tetteroo - 4 January 2023
    Amazing acting, average story bad build-up.
    Amazing acting by Bale, Washington, Robbie, Myers, Shannon and Malek.

    The story could have been really great, sadly the buildup was just too fast. A lot of angles and plots during mid-film were too much and too fast, that it made me uninterested during those scenes. The duo Myers and Shannon were, as expected, fondly to watch and both have a great charisma to see on screen. De Niro just came short in the role that he had and Malek was keeping me locked in, in the scenes that he was in.

    Once again, this could have been a great film, with amazing actors because this was an A+ cast. I'm a little disappointed that it just wasn't used right, like I was expecting. So it's a near miss for me and give this, personally, a 5.8 overall.
  • NinaCarla - 1 January 2023
    How can such an interesting story be made so boring?
    This film had all the goods - great actors, a big budget, an incredible true story, aesthetics of stunning era of style, a great script...And yet...I was bored and distracted by the half-way mark. I wanted to fast forward to the end.

    The message is beautiful and important but by the end I was just relieved that the film was over to remember it.

    I so wanted to love it, and I should've, but it was too long, slow, drawn out, almost self indulgent. It might be a slightly complicated plot but please give the audience more credit and get there quicker without the surplus quirks. Too try-hard to connect with, in my opinion.

    I'm just glad I waited for it to be free on Disney.
  • isaacmizrahii - 27 December 2022
    i agree
    With those that say it's 'all over the place'...not so much in the first half of the film...but the end...the last act...it seemed to try to tie together too many loose ends too quickly... but it still was, for me, a great movie...not because of the amazing, powerhouse cast, either...although having some of those people in ANY cast will help, to say the least... the movie had a lot to say. And besides that, it was based, as others have pointed out, on a true story...and it tells an age old story about why humanity is circling the drain...because a few will try to acquire all that they can at the expense of all else... it was a seesaw of the aesthetic and the absurd...but i've come away feeling very good about having seen this movie...i'm just glad that i didn't see it in a theater...so i could get up and walk around or get something to eat, every once in a while...movies have gotten pretty long over the last decade and a half...and it was hard sitting through them when they were just an hour and forty or MAYbe fifty minutes... still...i'd rather that they be longer and say all that they feel needs to be said, rather than edit out important scenes to fit a specific time maximum...
  • brentsbulletinboard - 23 December 2022
    What a Misfire
    Given this picture's much-maligned reputation, one might legitimately wonder why anybody would want to watch it. For me, doing so was more of an exercise in curiosity than anything else, to see if it really is as bad as everyone has been saying it is. However, unfortunately, after sitting through it and severely testing my resolve to stay awake, I'm sad to report that it lives up to every bit of what's been said about it. It's hard to believe that a writer-director as talented as David O. Russell, who has created such impressive works as "Flirting with Disaster" (1996), "The Fighter" (2010) and "American Hustle" (2013), could create something so far off the mark as this wayward offering. Yet this convoluted mess of a movie, which comically attempts to tell a fact-based story about the exposure of a nefarious conspiracy theory, hopelessly fails by never finding its stride, a product of its meandering, unfocused script. While the subject may be one worthy of exploration (though this particular scenario isn't especially compelling or overly revelatory), the film never latches on to the right tone or approach to tell it. The picture's attempt to do so through a half-hearted stab at a screwball comedy doesn't work, either, mainly due to poor pacing and humor that just never sticks its landings. All of this is unfortunate, too, given the film's excellent production design, superb original score and fine stellar cast (Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Robert De Niro, Rami Malek, Chris Rock, Michael Shannon, Mike Myers, Andrea Riseborough, Alessandro Nivola, Anya Taylor-Joy, Zoe Saldana, Matthias Schoenaerts, Taylor Swift and a host of colorful character actors), most of whom are sadly given little to work with. As a result, what was once considered one of the most anticipated releases of the year has turned out to be one of 2022's greatest critical failures, not to mention one of its biggest box office bombs. But, then, that's not entirely unexpected from a film that loses its viewers early on in the story and never manages to retrieve them. Those who are genuinely (or, perhaps more accurately, morbidly) curious about this cinematic fiasco can catch it online or on cable TV if one is really interested, but keep your pillows handy, and be sure to pack a lunch.
  • killercola - 19 December 2022
    A conundrum
    I could not decide if I liked this movie as I was watching it. I knew it was unique with fully loaded star power and great performances but the pacing and story had me scratching my head and even bored at times. I kept checking how much longer the movie had (HBOMax) more than a few times but didn't give up on it. I'm glad I stayed with it. It's a 2 1/2 hour movie but when I finally reached the two hour mark all of a sudden the two previous hours I invested paid off. The story came together quickly and had a surprisingly satisfying ending. This movie is definitely not for everyone. It requires a lot of patience and your full attention but I found it a worthwhile endeavor. Much of it is based on real events. A who's who of A-list actors throughout giving solid performances. Critics panned this movie unfairly in my opinion. What Director Russell created was no easy task. Beautifully filmed with many memorable scenes. I would definitely recommend watching it.