‘Amsterdam’ movie review: A brilliant, busy, and bizarre David O Russel outing

David O. Russell’s latest outing, Amsterdam, seems like a reflection of his style — brilliant, busy and bizarre. Amsterdam Director: David O. Russell Cast: Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Chris Rock, Anya Taylor-Joy, Zoe Saldaña, Mike Myers, Michael Shannon, Timothy Olyphant, Andrea Riseborough, Taylor Swift, Matthias Schoenaerts, Alessandro Nivola, Rami Malek, Robert De Niro Runtime: 134 minutes Storyline: Three friends who meet each other during the first World War find themselves in the middle of a gigantic conspiracy Written by Russell, Amsterdam, set in 1933 New York, is based on the Business Plot, an alleged bid to put a military dictator in the White House in place of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Narrated in part by war veteran and experimental doctor Burt, Amsterdam finds him in Europe at the tail end of World War I in 1918, where he meets fellow soldier, Harold Woodman. Apart from virtuoso performances by Bale, Robbie and Washington, there is Robert De Niro as the decorated general Gil Dillenbeck, Rami Malek as silky, silly Tom, Valerie’s industrialist brother, and Anya Taylor-Joy as his wife Libby, with tightly dressed hair and a huge crush on Dillenbeck. Chris Rock is Burt and Woodman’s smart-talking Army buddy Milton, Zoe Saldaña plays the quietly determined autopsy nurse Irma, and Timothy Olyphant is the hitman who inconveniently pops up at inopportune moments.