Amsterdam

Magandang pelikula!

Magandang pelikula!

Magandang pelikula!

I saw the trailer for this at a CMX theater and decided the trailer was weird enough to make me see this film. At its start, I pegged it for a comedy in the way Taylor Swift's character, Liz Meekins, was killed, coupled with Christian Bale's glass eye popping out. Although my wife gave me a sidewise look when I laughed. But about a third of the through, the plot line became serious, and the focused changed to watching a plot unfold that would have assassinated FDR to allow American businessmen to deal with Adolph Hitler and Mussolini so they might enrich themselves. The cast of this film is excellent with the three principles-Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, John David Washington-turning in excellent performances, especially Christian Bale who becomes Burt Berendsen. Regardless of the great acting, I believe the audience lost attention as they became lost in the unexplained plot curve. Even at the end as the credits begin to roll and you see and hear Robert De Niro (General Gil Dillenbeck) juxtaposed against the actual general whose testimony exposed the traitors, Marine Corps General Smedley Butler, speaking the same words, the audience is just left confused and upset. The film's message is just as important today as it was 1934; but the history it's based upon just isn't known, and I am not sure anyone knew what they were watching. Perhaps if a company is going to make a major film based on a basically unknown piece of history, they need to inform the audience ahead of time. I hope this film becomes a classic not only for the acting team assembled here; I don't want to forget Rami Malek, Zoe Saldana, Mike Myers, Henry Norcross, Chris Rock, and others who did such great work, but because one message is one we can't afford to ignore: Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.

source: Canterbury Glass

Two WWI friends, a doctor and a lawyer, are tasked by his daughter with investigating the death of their old commanding general. She is immediately killed, and her death pinned on them. Their search takes them back to the start of their friendship and an odd three-way relationship which formed when they were in hospital with injuries in Amsterdam. Writer/director David O Russell has made some quirky but enjoyable films, and this is another one. An opening title says that some this is true and, while a short piece at the end confirms this to be the case, I suspect that most of the film is Russell constructing a rambling and improbable preamble to that single closing fact. But, whatever. The cast is stellar, and the performances are good enough to carry you along with the narrative, no matter how unlikely it is. Christian Bale has great fun, but Margot Robbie is the heart of the film. The cast list had a couple of names who it was difficult to recognise on screen.

I am a big fan of David O. Russell as a director. I loved his work on "Silver linings playbook" and "American Hustle" and I also liked "I heart Huckabees" and "Joy". His new film, "Amsterdam" is in my opinion the best movie of the year so far. He has assembled an amazing all star cast for this movie. Led by the superb Christian Bale, the cast also includes Margot Robbie, Michael Shannon, Mike Myers, Rami Malek, John David Washington, Anya Taylor-Joy, Taylor Swift, Chris Rock and Robert De Niro. The entire cast give excellent performances. The story takes place partly in 1933 where Christian Bale's character is a doctor asked to perform an autopsy on an old man who has died. I won't give away any more of the plot because you should experience it for yourself. This movie is beautiful to look at with great cinematography by Emmanuel Lubezki who did "The Revenant" and "Birdman". The production design and costume design are also excellent. Overall a great moviegoing experience. Very entertaining film.

Took a gamble on this movie. Because I thought it would be good with Christian Bale, Margot Robbie and Robert De Niro in it. Plus it was cool to see so many familiar faces in there. But apart from Bale, everyone mostly turns up for a random scene or two. With no story or anything to keep all the stuff just thrown in there together. The film is really just one random unrelated scene after another, and is not only very very boring. But also really annoying in just how random some of the stuff in the movie is. Is it also supose to be a comedy? Because its handful of jokes are also pretty cringey. It's all the more disappointing because you expect more from this great cast. But a dud is a dud. And "Amsterdam" (Which they say like 30 times in the movie) is definitely that.

Pay attention. Honestly, doesn't take much paying attention to get it. Everything is pretty clearly laid out. This movie has many interrelated relationships and stories. People negging it clearly have ZERO ability to pay attention. They probably run away from everything they don't love instantly. Ok, they do jump around in time a little bit, but it fits. The relationships are very very interesting. They are well setup and results are not always what you'd expect. This movie is NOT for kids. There was a girl who was probably 5 years old there, and movie wouldn't make sense to her. Remember, it is a MYSTERY, so you gotta kinda pay attention! Go, enjoy and relax.

So the production invited a lot of famous actors to come in, say a few lines, in a few scenes - and then get a fat pay check. The result is a movie with a lot of cameos and scenes stacked on top of the other. Lots of dialogue that goes nowhere, and expensive sets that feels like a stage play. If you don't have a good script or story, it doesn't matter how many famous people you put in it. The movie won't be any good. It will be a waste of time for the viewers, and a waste of their hard earned inflation hit money. The dialogue does not get better just because there is more of it. Not worth it.