2022 in review: The worst big film
It cost $80m to create this movie, ‘Amsterdam’ was released in October and the ratings show that it really wasn’t worth it.
Directed by David O. Russell, Amsterdam is a film set in the 1930s where three friends; a doctor, a lawyer and a nurse are entangled in a mysterious murder of a US general who soon become suspects of another murder they witnessed. There’s a strong story of friendship within the movie, after two brothers in arms (Burt and Harold) at the end of the first world war, find themselves badly wounded. The nurse (Valerie) collects the bloody shrapnel to incorporate into her mixed media art, and the three form a strong bond.
The film is loosely based on a real-life conspiracy theory of right-wing fascist ideologies in the US at the time but jumps between that and the three friends’ past from 1933 New York and 1918 Amsterdam. The plot, at first, seems a lot smaller than you think but as the story unravels, it reveals that there’s a lingering problem.
David O. Russell’s past films such as Joy, Silver Linings Playbook, and American Hustle were a huge hit when released, ranking over at least 60% on rotten tomatoes, however, Amsterdam didn’t get past 33%. His movies used a lot of the same actors such as Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper and Robert De Niro but only De Niro returned for Amsterdam. Lawrence and Cooper work exceptionally well together as seen in previous films; this shows within the characters that they play.
Although David O. Russell casted a variety of well-known actors, it almost seemed as if he was just trying to fit in as much as he could of the A-list celebrities and instead of making a good film, it just ended up looking like a Hollywood red carpet feature.
Actor Christian Bale discussing his role in Amsterdam. Credit: Wikimedia Commons
The actors/actresses presented in the film are Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, Anya Taylor-Joy, Rami Malek, Taylor Swift, Robert De Niro and many more, which are all great actors but tough to see in the same movie. -★☆☆☆☆