Ready to visit “Amsterdam?”
“Amsterdam,” a new historical mystery from “Silver Lining’s Playbook” and “The Fighter” director David O. Russell is here. And if the marketing material has been more than a little confusing (because, admittedly, it has been), we’re here to clear up all of your questions – what the movie is, where you can watch it and who is a part of the unstoppable, all-star cast.
Read on for a definitive cheat sheet on one of this year’s more star-studded films.
Is “Amsterdam” streaming or in theaters?
It is in theaters, exclusively, starting October 7. The good news: you won’t have to travel to the Netherlands. The bad news: you will probably have to ditch the sweatpants and slippers.
When will “Amsterdam” be streaming on Hulu?
It’s unclear when “Amsterdam” will be streaming on Hulu, but our guess is that it’ll be closer to the 45-day window established by Disney for most of its big titles, than not. This would put its release on Hulu around Thanksgiving. But wait! There’s one more wrinkle, although this bug could be a feature. Thanks to a preexisting agreement between 20th Century and HBO, it’s likely that “Amsterdam” will premiere on both HBO Max and Hulu simultaneously, like “Nightmare Alley” and “The Bob’s Burgers Movie” did previously. So, come turkey time, you might have your choice of premium streaming service to watch “Amsterdam” on!
What is “Amsterdam” about?
This is a tricky one (there’s a reason the trailers have been so elusive). “Amsterdam” is a based-on-a-true-story caper that takes place during the Depression in New York City. That’s where three friends, who bonded during World War I – a pair of unlikely BFF soldiers (Christian Bale and John David Washington) and a wacky nurse (Margot Robbie) – reunite to foil an insidious conspiracy involving an ultra-right wing fringe group. (Keep in mind that this is when the seeds are being planted for World War II.) While quite funny and charming, it is also dealing with some very serious subject matter and, ultimately, how the course of history was changed by a few very powerful zealots.
Who is in the “Amsterdam” cast?
More like who isn’t in the “Amsterdam” cast (because, you see, there are a lot of famous people in the cast). Besides Bale, Washington and Robbie, there are so many movie stars in “Amsterdam.” The cast includes (deep breath) Chris Rock, Anya Taylor-Joy, Rami Malek, Zoe Saldaña, Mike Myers, Michael Shannon, Ed Begley Jr, Timothy Olyphant, Taylor Swift, Andrea Riseborough, Matthias Schoenaerts, Colleen Camp, Alessandro Nivola and some up-and-coming actor named Robert De Niro. Told you this thing was stacked.
Where are similar films streaming?
It’s hard to pinpoint what else “Amsterdam” is really like, in terms of both tone and style, but there are plenty of earlier David O. Russell movies so let’s start there! “Three Kings,” which similarly mixes caper elements with wartime tension, is streaming on Fubo and Showtime. His existential comedy “I Heart Huckabees” is on HBO Max and DirecTV, while “American Hustle” (another historical crime film of sorts, again filled with all sorts of movie stars including Christian Bale) is on Starz and DirecTV. “Silver Linings Playbook,” starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence, is on Fubo. And “The Fighter,” another Russell/Bale joint, is on Paramount+ and Hoopla. Russell’s earliest film, “Flirting with Disaster,” is available on Fubo, Starz and DirecTV, while his most recent film “Joy” (which also starred De Niro) is on DirecTV and via the TBS or TNT apps. That’s a whole lot of Russell!