I will never be David O. Russell's biggest fan. His movies always have a ton of potential with interesting concepts, star-studded casts and intriguing film style. Yet across the board they have always failed to capture my attention. I know enough about Hollywood to realize why they are critical darlings, but I find they always have an over-bloated sense of themselves, and miss the mark on the main objective one always hopes for when watching a movie...to be entertaining. Amsterdam is no different. Inspite of well written characters, David O. Russell's signature sluggish pacing still found me checking out mentally less than an hour in. Christian Bale is always a favorite of mine, and his continued collaboration with Russell are what keeps bringing me back to his films time and again. I can see why Bale loves him, as he continuously writes dynamic characters for Bale to sink his teeth into. This is only the second movie I've seen John David Washington in and he is fantastic again. The performances are all good in fact. The movie overall just lacks something that I can't quite put my finger on and that is very much on brand for my relationship with the film catalog of David O. Russell.