A movie with a cast this good has no business being so boring and meh.
Given the talent involved, this is terrible and so self-indulgent. One of the most boring films I've seen in some time. John David Washington is not a leading man, and this just adds to his poor resume.
It’s incredible how many great actors you can shoehorn into your movie and get the worst performance out of everyone; Christian Bale, on the other hand, is the only good one here.
John David Washington is so one-note here, as he has the same tone of voice and facial expression throughout. You can tell Robert De Niro is phoning it in regarding his line delivery and lack of interest.
The whole movie feels like an overdose of “acting pills”. It’s a plotting movie that thinks it’s clever and funny but ends up being confusing and boring.
David O. Russell's first film in many years is very frustrating. It was already clear from the trailers that the large cast, peppered with many well-known names, was supposed to be the selling point of "Amsterdam". And that is precisely the film's major flaw. There are simply far too many characters who are frequently given little to do. Every time a new actor first appears, the camera lingers on their face forever. This can be extremely uncomfortable at times. Nobody in the cast even comes close to bringing their A-game. Of the main trio, I mostly liked Christian Bale's Burt. Meanwhile, Margot Robbie is in real danger of being typecast. And Harold, played by John David Washington, is a bore.
I also have little positive to say about the plot. Most importantly, it is totally convoluted. The majority of the film is made up of sequences with multiple people standing or sitting in a room. And there is a lot of talking. Every single one of those conversations overstayed its welcome. These scenes are accompanied by a score that is nothing more than background noise. To avoid being so damn boring, the story should have been greatly streamlined.
The only positive aspects are the solid cinematography, excellent costume design, and overall production values. Still, the absurdly high $80 million budget for this type of film can only be explained by the massive cast. There are no expensive set pieces or, at the very least, elaborate scenes. It is stated at the beginning of the film that "a lot of this really happened." I have no doubts about that, because nothing noteworthy occurs in "Amsterdam"—at least not in the movie.
I gave it a 9. The satire was spot on and pulling together current issues to the early 1930's is just fantastically done. I believe this movie is going to be one of those cult classics, underrated at first but recognized as a classic work eventually.
The low ratings seem to come from people that don't understand satire and the movie would fly over their heads. The script is laced with references to the early 1930's fascist movement in the USA, and they are just dropped into the story so nonchalantly unless you know US history between WWI and WWII, particularly the efforts by the American Bund (US Nazis), most of the references would be missed. For example, the giant George Washington portrait is a direct snub to the American Bund. There were 32 Americans arrested for espionage, largest in American history, for trying to establish a dictatorship. There were rumors that they approached at least two generals. One semi portrayed here fantastically by DeNiro. The attempt to appeal to veterans, hoping they would turn on their Oath to the Constitution, happened also. Honestly, just writing this I want to watch again to be able to point out so many of the references that were placed into the story. Just a fantastic script.
The low ratings are most likely because it is satire. Satire usually flies over the heads of dumber people and we seem to be at a juncture where idiots reign supreme. But it's extremely well acted and directed. I felt they did a wonderful job of capturing the 1930's feel in the way it was written, acted and directed. I thought the camera positioning could've been a bit more Orsen Welles style in a few scenes. But just fantastic overall.
I really enjoyed the movie, the acting was great, camera work was good, and overall it was good. I do understand people saying it doesn't have any suspension, but I do like it that way, a story telling easy movie to watch. Casting was amazing with a lot of guest stars, which I liked so much.
It's delightfully charming, but without any real punch. The characters are great. The actors are on point. The scenario is interesting. But the writing is all over the walls and there's never any wow or real suspense. It's a noir movie without the mystery or who done it. Complete failure on the narrative part.
This probably the worst disappointment I ever experienced. On the other hand, it is quite impressive to make such a boring movie with this cast
I don't know what David O Russell think he did but it was not it. It was honestly boring, the plot and the dialogues are confusing. You never really know what is going on (in a bad way), nothing makes sense and the only good actors were De Niro and Christian Bale. Poor acting directions and direction overall, although the set looked quite good. I did hope for much more than what I got watching this movie, almost got out but I wanted to see how far it would get. 4/10 for the set and some of the cinematography.
Like a vest in a 3-piece suit, sure it's not trendy right now but that doesn't mean it can't be cool.
David O Russell delivers a film in a classic Hollywood vein, where a mad doctor and a black lawyer in 1930s New York stumble on a plot to overthrow the US government.
Like a cross between The Hudsucker Proxy and Nightmare Alley, the strong cast (there's only one actor I have difficulty with), true-ish story and flawless directing make for a solid theatrical outing.
Finest demonstration of how having the best cast is useless if you don't have a compelling story to tell and most of all you don't know how to tell it.
Looked so good until I watched it... and it sucked.
2 1/2 hours long and I switched it off after 1 1/2 hours cause it was just talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk. It a movie!!! You don't have to describe everything like its a book... show us!!!!
It's not even interesting dialogue - it' s just words spewed from the actors.. endlessly. Each scene must have been 1,000 pages long..
Oh, and nothing much happened... because the dialogue got in the way.
Skip this crap.
-10/10
How did they manage to trick the cast into doing this boring ass movie? Did something happen in post production? It's dreadful.
[Disney+] Perhaps with less expectations this film is not so negligible, but it is true that this David O. Russell in Wes Anderson mode doesn't seem to be the most appropriate remedy against boredom. With a cast of actors, Hollywood stars and some impostors, the film relies too much on the solidity of its performers, and it seems that neither the script nor the direction itself have much interest in providing a balance in a story that is it develops in spite of the characters, instead of in favor of them.
I could watch a Margaret Robbie makeup tutorial, but not this. The interracial scenes are great to have but feel forced, this is awkward as she's so very convincing a lunatics obsessed lover. It feels like Robbie's agent pushed her to "get woke" and she phoned it in. Gross.
Complete waste. 1/10
Well that was meh. Acting was fine, scripting was fine, but there was no real feel or punch to the movie. Feels a bit long in parts. And the narrating. Just shut up already man. You’re not adding anything of value, let the movie move on to the next scene/act already.
amsterdam is a terribly guilty please.
Set between world wars, Amsterdam chases a trio of unlikely misfits who uncover a conspiracy to replace FDR with a fascist-friendly puppet. As the three sleuths are also old friends with a complicated history and unfinished personal business, we spend nearly as much time exploring their past as we do probing the contemporary plot. That’s where the famously free-spirited capital city comes in. Having met in a Dutch military hospital during WWI, grown restless together and summarily escaped, they proceeded to paint the town red until responsibility drew them back home to America and life got in the way.
Given the wealth of potential flavor in the mix, it’s downright shocking that this makes for such dull cinema. Secret Nazi societies, mentally-unhinged aristocrats and purveyors of postwar facial prosthetics? Speakeasies and sterilization clinics and posh, theatrical labor rallies? Christian Bale, Robert De Niro and Margot Robbie are here! Taylor Swift gets pushed under a bus! This thing is dying to be all loose and quirky and shocking, trying its hardest to mimic the Coen Brothers, but evidently it took the wrong notes and learned the wrong lessons from that filmography. Like peering through the window of a Ripley’s Believe-it Or Not, then visiting a doctor’s waiting room instead.
David O. Russell is one of those directors that likes to spin a lot of plates, so when he fails he does so quite spectacularly. He’s trying to recapture that same magic from American Hustle here, but the string breaks quickly because he’s just unable to drum up any interesting material. The narrative isn’t compelling, emotionally it doesn’t do much (it’s not very funny or moving), it’s too heavy on exposition and the characters are only mildly interesting. Still, I like what this eventually gets to on a deeper level about the relationship between corporatism and fascism, you can’t accuse it of playing it safe. Christian Bale does a great job, but the other performances aren’t that strong. For example, you can hear Margot Robbie’s accent slip through, the Taylor Swift stunt casting was a bad idea and even John David Washington’s acting is very one note. I appreciate that there’s a lot of production value on the screen, but it probably would’ve looked a lot better if Emmanuel Lubezki hadn’t dropped a teabag in the film processing chemicals.
3.5/10
Best part of this movie was Taylor swift getting run over other wise it’s a 2 hours of hit and miss moments
Trakt.tv requires more words for a review.
But this movie can be summarized with a single word: boring.
:heart:x7
I liked this movie - it doesn't quite fit the same mold as other movies. The writing, acting, cinematography and production values are well done. Whats interesting is that this movie is based on a political conspiracy from the 1930's
How I rate:
1-3 :heart: = seriously! don't waste your time
4-6 :heart: = you may or may not enjoy this
7-8 :heart: = I expect you will like this too
9-10 :heart: = movies and TV shows I really love!
I thoroughly enjoyed watching this, not a super powered wham bam but a classic noire drama where you have to pay attention. Loosely based on a real incident (Major General Smedley Butler) but given a full Hollywood treatment. Christian Bale was great I haven't seen enough of him lately. Emmanuel Lubezki's cinematography was superb, hope he takes home a fourth Oscar for this one.
They butchered a historical event that could’ve made a good movie.
The slate has a good article on the event this movie is based
A beautiful trainwreck. (5 words)
This is the weirdest, and longest, episode of Columbo I've ever seen.
That's who Christian Bale is playing, right?
It's fine in its way, but there's too much going on without anything actually going on. Pace really could have been picked up, especially considering how it seemed to have promise when Washington and Bale were back in the USA, hired by a woman to investigate a suspicious death. It could have been a noir tinged film, but I don't know that they knew what they wanted.
The birdwatchers (Myers and Shannon) and the detectives (Nivola and Shoenaerts) could be removed entirely and not affect the story at all. Some real tightening up could have been done. Chris Rock wasn't needed, nor any Beatrice and the in-laws.
I think it's a mistake that Saldaña wasn't given a bigger role, maybe without the boring wafer thin love interest role. She's hardly more than a prop.
Honestly, everything was fine, but there was just too much filler. 2:14 but I think it could have been a tighter 1:45 and only making it a more interesting, fast-paced film.
In The Man From Toronto, they couldn't pronounce 'Toronto' right, and in Amsterdam, they pronounced 'Amsterdam' like they'd never heard anyone Dutch say it.
Good cast, good setting, but a script that does not know which movie is being told, it cannot be several genres at the same time, a disappointment.
The entire movie I kept thinking the actor who plays Harold must be a nepo baby or something. I was right. My god! I can't remember the last time I've seen acting this bad. It's almost impressive how terrible he is. Like it did make probably a lasting impression. That's more than what most actors could do.
The people who say this movie was boring are probably Michael Bay fans.
A thrilling story about friendship, bravery and love.
And what a fantastic case, and amazing costumes.
The first half is tedious and unengaging, but the second half actually gets interesting. If they could cut the first half in half, Amsterdam would be much improved.
Great performance by Christian Bale.
Compelling story with an engaging cast.
Bale was f tasti in his performance. Very funny and amusing movie when he was involved. When he isn't in a scene it drags. The two other leads don't hold the same charisma which is a shame because Margot Robbie can be great. The movie fails to make me fall in love with Amsterdam the way the characters do. It more just looks like a drunken weekend which they fondly remember.
Not as good or clever as it thinks it is but certainly watchable, with an excellent performance from Margot Robbie and if nothing else it shines a light on an under-appreciated bit of real history (though of course those interested should do their research elsewhere!)
What the hell did I wasted my time on?
It's not amazing, but not as bad as people say. I quite enjoyed my time with it though I can see how people could be disappointed looking at how much star power this has
For a cast that is this good, I expect more. It is not that it was necessarily bad, it simply should be more enjoyable. It was too long with long periods of dull plot points. Bale/Robbie/Washington/De Niro/Taylor-Joy/Malek are all quite literally my favorites (except De Niro - who is still good, just not my go to), and I genuinely don't really care to check this one out again. Will a certain group of people like this? Probably. I am just more surprised I am not in that bunch.
Rating: 2/5 - 6.5/10 - Not Recommended to Everyone
It was incredibly refreshing to see disabilities, permanent injuries, and chronic pain so front and centre (and respectfully portrayed, at that) in a movie that didn't even revolve around those topics. I also loved the friendship between the three main characters; their dynamic was so vivid, fascinating, and funny to watch, it really brought the story and the individual characters to life. Additionally, while I feel one important social issue was just brushed aside as a brief, vague example of wrongdoing (very mild spoiler eugenics and forced sterilization end mild spoiler), it was at least good handling of the topics of veterans' rights, racism, and accessible health care.
very enjoyable movie. i heard the reviews of it being mediocre despite having an amazing cast.
not every movie needs to be a master piece and like many movies from David Russel (joy and silving linings) it's more about enjoying life and trying to find your place in the world. Like the tea set some may find it grotesc or an abomination, but it is art and very beautiful to some. All actores give good performances all around, fun to see known faces.
the scenarios are very well put together and it camera works invites you to look deeper into the movie. With the various commentaries of birds watching and being an astute watcher.
My overall score is 7/10, it is a fun movie with a little bit of history.
Not really a bad film, but with the massive talent both in front of AND behind the camera, the most profoundly disappointing one of 2022
I gave it a 9. The satire was spot on and pulling together current issues to the early 1930's is just fantastically done. I believe this movie is going to be one of those cult classics, underrated at first but recognized as a classic work eventually.
The low ratings seem to come from people that don't understand satire and the movie would fly over their heads, especially if they have no knowledge of pre-WWII Nazis in America. The script is laced with references to the early 1930's fascist movement in the USA, and they are just dropped into the story so nonchalantly unless you know US history between WWI and WWII, particularly the efforts by the American Bund (US Nazis), most of the references would be missed. For example, the giant George Washington portrait is a direct snub to the American Bund. There were 32 Americans arrested for espionage, largest in American history, for trying to establish a dictatorship. There were rumors that they approached at least two generals. One semi portrayed here fantastically by DeNiro. The attempt to appeal to veterans, hoping they would turn on their Oath to the Constitution, happened also. Henry Ford was rumored top have been part of the group but managed to avoid when arrests were made, as did other wealthy benefactors of the attempted coup. Honestly, just writing this I want to watch again to be able to point out so many of the references that were placed into the story. Just a fantastic script.
The low ratings are most likely because it is satire. Satire usually flies over the heads of dumber people and we seem to be at a juncture where idiots reign supreme. But it's extremely well acted and directed. I felt they did a wonderful job of capturing the 1930's feel in the way it was written, acted and directed. I thought the camera positioning could've been a bit more Orsen Welles style in a few scenes. But just fantastic overall.
World Economic Forum (WEF) = Committee of the Five
Christian Bale's acting and Margot's charm were the only good thing. Poor acting by Taylor Swift, Pushed Interracial relationship, showed that Blond girl are stupid. All the star still fails to catch the audience attention.
With such a renowned and talented cast, this film to me ended up to be an unexpected disappointment.
What made me complete this movie is the number of popular faces it cast...nevertheless, I skipped through most of it. I was not entertained at all. Money not wisely spent.
I went into this movie knowing that it got pretty bad reviews. I am here to say that they are justified. The movie could not decide if it wanted to be a comedy, drama, mystery, thriller, farce, etc. It tried to be a little of all of these things and came up short in every category. It is weird to say that because the film has so much going for it - the leads in the movie are amazing and the sets look fantastic. I am not an expert in this area but it seems like the script could have used another re-write or two as the story was over-stuffed and hard to follow. On paper it seems as though this could have been a classic.
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the way Christian Bale is able to completely give himself to a role and Embody a character is so mesmerizing, this man KNOWS his craft so well
& i'm always amazed by how they create these incredibly realistic looks of the 19th century, from streets, cars and costumes;
Shout by Rafael BelokurowsBlockedParent2022-11-10T08:48:37Z
Christian Bale must have awful pain in his back... from carrying the entire cast of this f...ing movie in his back. His and arguably De Niro's actings are what little we can salvage from this one.