It’s been seven years since the last David O. Russell film, which feels far too long after his resurgence in the early 2010s. Amsterdam marks his return to the big screen with yet another star-filled cast led by Christian Bale, John David Washington, and Margot Robbie. Amsterdam is comedy-drama about a trio of World War I veteran friends who unwittingly become suspects in a murder and their attempt to clear their names. The premise and the cast offer tons of promise, but does Russell have another hit in him after the hiatus?
While the line “the same thing that make you math could make you die” in Jay-Z’s “A Week Ago” is about the pitfalls of selling drugs, its relevance extends to Russell and Amsterdam 24 years later. Having a plethora of A-list talent at his disposal to tell his character-driven stories is a formula that’s worked almost every time during his recent run, and it’s what ultimately kills his film this go around.
The biggest issue is Amsterdam never becomes the whodunit it’s supposed to be due to Russell’s dedication to keeping things character-driven instead of focusing on the mystery. Russell’s infatuation with his characters’ backstories leads to a deeper dive into them than needed and pushes the murder his protagonists want to solve to the back burner.
It takes the film through far too many anecdotes about the main characters’ friendship and external relations, birdwatching, and other things irrelevant to peeling back the layers of the murder case. Character development is always welcomed and expected, but not at the expense of sacrificing the inciting incident or the exact reason the story exists.
That refusal to stay focused on the main plot turns Russell’s other strength, his A-list cast, into another weakness for Amsterdam. The collection of talent isn’t the problem, but the number of characters in the film undercuts their ability to showcase why they are there. It’s way too much going on for anybody to have the impact they should.
The comedic talents of Chris Rock are reduced to him just being in the film to point out the presence of white people and using racial slurs such as the n-word and the c-word. Mike Myers and Michael Shannon? A few scenes of banter that don’t move the needle. Zoe Saldana and Robert DeNiro? Glorified cameos.
All-star casts obviously don’t provide much room for everybody to be a star. Still, Russell’s ability to bring everyone together and make them matter, as he did in American Hustle and Silver Linings Playbook, is sorely missing.
Despite those flaws, Amsterdam has some bright spots, starting with Bale’s entertaining performance as Bert. It’s a lighter Bale role than usual, but his excellence remains. Whether playing the comedic foil or giving the movie its heart by hitting the perfect emotional cues (especially when it comes to Bert’s estranged wife), he does his best to carry the film without much support.
Amsterdam’s cinematography also stands out. Three-time Oscar winner Emmanuel Lubezki uses the ideal filters and colors to give the appropriate nostalgic feel. It makes clear why the beauty of 1918 post-war Amsterdam would be a downgrade to the gritty 1930s New York City, an essential piece to the film’s narrative.
Another feather in Amsterdam’s cap is the social issues it touches upon, primarily the treatment of veterans. While it is messy and convoluted, Russell deserves credit for highlighting how harshly veterans were (and still are) treated upon their return from war and how influential people are quick to use them as pawns to advance whatever agenda they’re pushing at the time. He also addresses race and class via the romantic relationships in the film and makes some strong points about it.
Amsterdam’s embarrassment of riches in front of and behind the camera gave the film everything it needed to be among 2022’s best films. Sadly, Russell’s affection for his main characters got the best of him and ruined a good thing. Bale’s performance and the cinematography are strong enough to keep your attention for chunks of time, but Amsterdam goes too far off its path to warrant a trip to the theaters.
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