I like this movie a lot. The cast is great, the story is great, the direction is great. The plot kind of wobbles. Despite the brilliant cast, it's not a movie that shines a bright light over each character for identification. My seatmate didn't recognize Christian Bale. I didn't recognize Mike Meyers - not a favorite - and I surely didn't recognize Alessandro Nivola.

There's the beauty of gentle, loving friendship, which is a theme throughout the movie. But there's also the ugliness of the facial disfigurements the WWI vets suffered, their use of drugs, and their abandonment by the US government; it's this that spurs the movie's action.

After the film climaxes, at a fundraising Gala for a Black regiment that's disrupted by fascist hecklers, the story is complete. It's OK to leave 10 minutes before the movie ends. Those ten minutes are a heartfelt defense of love and a sincere plea that we all pay more attention to love and art. It's a self-indulgent statement and it doesn't ruin Amsterdam, but it's anti-climactic. On the other hand, Margot Robbie has a marvelous fantasy shot that almost redeems the film's finish.

If the producers cut the last ten minutes, I'd likely give Amsterdam a 10.