‘Amsterdam’ Review: Disjointed, Dull David O. Russell Period Comedy Wastes Talented Cast

The new movie Amsterdam has been in theaters for just one week, but it’s already been deemed a massive failure due to its disappointing box office performance.

While tentpoles resuscitated moviegoing this past summer with pics like Top Gun: Maverick, it’s true that the more, adult-skewing fare is having a much harder time now. No where was this more true than with David O. Russell’s Amsterdam which rivals believed had a shot at opening to $12M-$15M this past weekend based on the period absurdist comedy’s glossy ensemble of Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Rami Malek, Robert De Niro, Anya Taylor Joy, Taylor Swift, Michael Shannon (the list doesn’t stop…).

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter David O. Russell’s star-studded period drama “Amsterdam” collapsed in its box office debut, earning an anemic $6.5 million from 3,005 North American theaters. The movie, which cost $80 million to produce, couldn’t overcome bad reviews and minimal buzz and is shaping up to be one of the biggest misfires of the year. This weekend’s other newcomer “Lyle Lyle Crocodile” also fell short of expectations with $11.5 million from 4,350 cinemas in its opening weekend. However, Sony’s animated family film, an adaptation of the popular children’s book about an  anthropomorphic reptile (who sings!) voiced by Shawn Mendes, won’t be as painful for the studio given its $50 million price tag.

David O Russell’s oeuvre, it’s that great film-making chops (Three Kings!) meet wildly divergent outcomes (often within a single film); Russell will fall out with some of his cast, and said cast will be star-filled. His latest is Amsterdam, a period crime romp led by Margot Robbie, Christian Bale and John David Washington, abetted by Robert De Niro, Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Rock, Rami Malek, Mike Myers, Andrea Riseborough, Zoe Saldaña, Michael Shannon and Taylor Swift. Results may vary.

“Amsterdam,” the new David O. Russell historical mystery, has enough mega-watt stars to power a midsized American city.The cast includes (but is not limited to) Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Anya Taylor-Joy, Rami Malek, Chris Rock, Mike Myers, Zoe Saldaña, Timothy Olyphant and Matthias Schoenaerts. If there’s a lead in the movie, it’s Christian Bale, who developed the project with Russell and who stars as an injured veteran of World War I who is now looking to help his fellow wounded soldiers start their new lives in New York.

“Amsterdam,” David O. Russell‘s first movie in seven years, hits theaters on Friday, and it’s his third team-up with Christian Bale.

Christian Bale is confirming that he did intervene during some drama that went down on the American Hustle set.

Zack Sharf Christian Bale confirmed in a recent GQ interview that he “mediated” a tense situation between David O. Russell and Amy Adams on the set of their 2013 crime movie “American Hustle.” Russell is known for his aggressive directing style, and Adams revealed in 2016 that he made her cry on set. “I was really just devastated on set,” Adams said about working with Russell on “American Hustle.” “I mean, not every day, but most.” Reports have long stated that Bale got in the middle of whatever was going on between Adams and Russell and told his frequent director to “back off.” Speaking to GQ, Bale confirmed he was a “mediator” on set and said that whatever tension existed did not taint his experience.

Brent Lang Executive Editor In one corner, a star-studded murder mystery from one of the most acclaimed directors in Hollywood. In the other, a family fable that features a CGI crocodile who sounds a lot like Shawn Mendes. As Hollywood heads into another quiet fall weekend at the box office, David O. Russell’s “Amsterdam” is squaring off against “Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile,” and both new releases are facing strong competition from reigning champ “Smile.” Of the two new entrants, “Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile” seems to be in the stronger position. There haven’t been many movies geared toward kids — the last one was “DC League of Super-Pets” way back in July. The $50 million production will open in more than 4,300 locations, where it should make $15 million or more. Sony Pictures, the studio behind the film, is being more conservative and projecting an opening in the $11 million to $12 million range. That could be enough for a first-place finish, depending on how steeply “Smile,” which opened to $22.6 million, drops in its second weekend of release.

“The world is beautiful, this world is luscious and precise, and it takes specific people to create a living world,” director David O. Russell says in a new exclusive clip about the craft of his latest film, “Amsterdam.” While the film, which comes out this week on October 7, has been lauded for its sprawling, A-list cast—Margot Robbie, Christian Bale, and John David Washington as the three leads, plus a cavalcade of supporting actors like Chris Rock, Anya Taylor-Joy, Zoe Saldaña, Mike Myers, Michael Shannon, Taylor Swift, Rami Malek, and Robert De Niro— there are also several superstars below the line who worked on the gorgeous-looking movie.

Amsterdam as David O. Russell wouldn’t call cut.The actor, starring in the American Hustle filmmaker’s new film alongside Christian Bale and John David Washington, spoke on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to explain that “technically, we didn’t ever really stop”.Robbie explained that the shoot went beyond the permit allowances while shooting in Pasadena, which forced the police forces to intervene.“You get a permit to shoot somewhere. We were in Pasadena and the time was up,” Robbie said.

Christian Bale’s Burt Berenstein character says he “left his eye in France” in David O. Russell’s fanciful, murder-mystery/ larger-conspiracy comedic thriller, “Amsterdam,” a movie named for the city where the films lead trio spends their halcyon years, living, loving and laughing together.

Amsterdam.” It’s a film from established auteur David O. Russell, whose reputation for delivering the goods allowed him to attract a murderer’s row of talent that includes Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Chris Rock, Anya Taylor-Joy, Taylor Swift and Robert De Niro. And yet, the film, bolstering more stars than in the heavens, to quote an old line — and a budget that’s upwards of $80 million — is arriving in theaters having been pulverized by the critics who have published so far and hoping to rescue its investment by overcoming the reviews to be a commercial success.

Christian Bale and Rami Malek are stepping out to promote their new movie!

Ethan Shanfeld Frequent method actor Christian Bale typically has no problem morphing into his characters on set. But on his latest film, David O. Russell’s “Amsterdam,” he ran into an obstacle: his co-star Chris Rock. Bale says the director had Rock tell him some stories while on set, but “Chris is so bloody funny” that it prevented him from getting into character. “I remember his first day, I was excited to meet him, I’m a big fan of his standup,” Bale told IndieWire. “Then he arrives, and he’s doing some things… David [O. Russell] told him to tell me some stories that I didn’t know he was gonna tell me, which is the way David works often. And I was loving it.”

Christian Bale revealed the reason why he had to stop speaking to Chris Rock on the set of their upcoming movie, Amsterdam.

Margot Robbie "clung" to John David Washington on the set of Amsterdam because she was "scared" to work with director David O. Russell. The Australian actress stars as Valerie Voze in the upcoming period mystery comedy, which follows three friends who become the prime suspects in a murder in the 1930s.