Like a sloppy guy at a bar telling a farfetched tale

| Oct 19, 2022

May “Amsterdam” ’s melodramatic sentimentality be forgiven; not many films of such exuberance, since the time of Chaplin, have been fuelled by such rage.

| Oct 11, 2022

Russell’s conclusions are maudlin, but also curiously effective -- the film’s broad earnestness and sappy entreaties, prove hard to dismiss.

| Oct 10, 2022

Behind the high energy and flashy cast, there's a shocking lack of emotional depth — like a performer giving us jazz hands paired with a vacant stare.

| Oct 9, 2022

In the same way that its bloated cast becomes a distraction which takes you out of the story, Amsterdam is unnecessarily convoluted, twisting its confusing narrative into a cobra knot.

| Original Score: 2.5/5 | Oct 9, 2022

Russell’s showy directorial pizzazz is very much in evidence, but there’s an edge of desperation to the chunks of exposition that dam the flow of this already meandering tale.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Oct 8, 2022

As it accumulates running time (and characters and plot points), Amsterdam starts to get exhausting when it should perhaps feel liberating or intoxicating.

| Oct 8, 2022

Russell has actually crafted what at its core is a fundamentally simple story designed to push an overt message, before bogging it down in quirky supporting characters and unnecessary detours.

| Oct 8, 2022

Jaw-droppingly terrible, interminably dull...

| Original Score: 1.5/4 | Oct 7, 2022

Russell, to his everlasting credit, has made a film in which having cockeyed optimism, at this moment in the world, somehow feels like a radical act.

| Oct 7, 2022

From Oscar-winning showman David O. Russell, 64, there's so much razzmatazz, artistry and comedic snap -- yet the antic pastiche lacks a satisfying mystery plot and, sadly, is less than the sum of its amazing performances.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Oct 7, 2022

Terribly written by Russell and obtusely edited (huge gaps between lines)... It’s mostly an endurance test. But, wow, those faces.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Oct 7, 2022

Only in its milder moments, when Russell is not trying too hard to be madcap, or to badger us with dark political portents, does “Amsterdam” stir and convince.

| Oct 7, 2022

What Amsterdam lacks in tight storytelling, it more than makes up for in exuberant, happy-go-lucky spirit.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Oct 7, 2022

Simultaneously overstuffed and undernourished, frantic and meandering, Amsterdam is one big, star-studded, hot mess of a movie.

| Original Score: 1.5/4 | Oct 7, 2022

Pills and perversity have always brought out the best in Russell.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Oct 7, 2022

David O. Russell’s strands an A-list cast —Bale! Robbie! Washington! De Niro!— in a pokey and problematic mystery romp. You can feel Russell’s cage-rattling intensity, but only in fits and starts as the convoluted conspiracy plot goes out in a fizzle.

| Oct 7, 2022

Gorgeous cinematography from Emmanuel Lubezki, Judy Becker’s excellent production design, and Albert Wolsky’s fabulous costumes add to the frustration. A good-looking waste, but a waste nonetheless.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Oct 7, 2022

David O. Russell’s new film, “Amsterdam” has a powerhouse cast, a wisp of a true story and a wildly uneven and overly complicated script. The results are, therefore, messy and mixed.

| Original Score: B- | Oct 7, 2022

A zany farce with a sweet core that it takes a lot of work to unearth, "Amsterdam" is overcomplicated and often confounding but finds redemption in its resolution.

| Original Score: B- | Oct 6, 2022