Writer/director David O’ Russell, in my experience, puts together a lot of high quality films with great performances from his central cast, particularly frequent collaborator Christian Bale. So, seeing Russell had a new movie coming out with an impressively large cast of familiar faces should have been a no-brainer for me. I mean, the cast includes Bale, alongside up-and-comer John David Washington (I don’t think he’s quite at the level of superstar yet) and the generally impressive Margot Robbie as the central trio, a group of companions who met and formed a tight pact in the first World War.
Well, it’s out now. Was it worth it?
Dr. Burt Berendsen (Bale) is a veteran of the Great War who lost an eye in France. In 1930s New York, he runs a practice without a license from the looks of things, estranged from his wealthy wife Beatrice (Andrea Riseborough), when he gets a call from his closest friend and attorney Harold Woodsman (Washington). The two had met when Burt was made the commanding officer of Harold’s unit in the war in an attempt by General Meekins (Ed Begley Jr) to find a white officer who would treat his black subordinates fairly and that the black soldiers would follow. As it is, Burt and Harold make a pact to always look out for each other, a pact that eventually is extended to include Valerie (Robbie), a wealthy American who came to France to work as a nurse, found love with Harold, and friendship with Burt. The three then spent a bit of time partying and creating art in Amsterdam. But that was before Burt returned to the wife that didn’t seem to want him around anymore, and now he and Harold get a special request: perform an autopsy on the recently deceased Meekins, on a request from the man’s daughter Elizabeth (Taylor Swift) who doesn’t quite trust her father died of natural causes.
That turns out to be a good hunch, but things get worse when Elizabeth herself is killed with Burt and Harold framed for the crime. They’ll need to get Valerie’s help if they want to both stay out of prison and figure out what’s going on. Valerie has her own problems with her brother Tom (Rumi Malek) and sister-in-law Libby (Anya Taylor-Joy), but who wanted Meekins dead? What did he know? And what is the connection to retired Marine Corps General Gil Dillenbeck (frequent Russell collaborator Robert De Niro)? There’s something going on, something that also involves the veterans gala that Burt and Harold organize every year to support wounded and disfigured veterans like themselves. Can the trio figure out what’s going on before it’s too late?
This movie actually opens with the caption that much of what happens actually did, and I very quickly realized who De Niro’s Dillenbeck is a stand-in for. From there, I more or less figured out the whole movie, but somehow, I don’t think this is the sort of murder mystery that will provoke a lot of confusion. Even if a viewer doesn’t recognize who De Niro is supposed to be–and the movie shows the actual man just as the closing credits start up–I can’t imagine this one is that much of a puzzle. The culprit becomes rather obvious from a certain point, but the movie doesn’t seem to realize it as it goes to great lengths to explain everything for, I am guessing, particularly slow viewers. For a movie trying to be something of a mystery, it just isn’t a very good one. The movie also seems to be something of a comedy, but I wouldn’t call it a particularly funny one either aside from a line or two.
And oddly enough, aside from Bale and maybe Mike Myers as a British man whose business supplies Burt with his glass eyes, the entire cast seems to be reciting lines in a rather monotone style, often directly to the camera. I mean, there are a lot of shots of characters looking square into the camera as they are talking, but often with little or no inflection. Bale, as he often does especially for Russell, disappears into another charismatic lead character, one with his own tricks and foibles. I don’t know if Russell was going for an older style of acting, say something that wouldn’t have looked out of place in a movie made at the time the movie was set, but it just seemed kinda odd how so many members of the cast seemed to be reciting their lines. When even reliable actors like Taylor-Joy, Malek, and Michael Shannon seem to be just speaking their dialogue as opposed to, say, emoting or something, it sticks out. I wouldn’t say the acting is wooden or anything. It just seemed to be done in a stylized manner, consistent across the entire cast (aside from Bale), and it just didn’t work for me. Bale gives a great performance as I expected him to, but there isn’t much else to recommend anyone rush out to see here. I wouldn’t even call the movie bad. It’s just kinda meh, and it doesn’t even have the level of somewhat mediocre bonkers of, say, Don’t Worry Darling.
You know, Margot Robbie has another movie coming out for Oscar season from a respected, award-winning director, set in another time period, and with another all-star cast. Here’s hoping I enjoy Babylon a heck of a lot more than I did Amsterdam.
Grade: C
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