“Amsterdam” (** out of four) was a sputtering period comedy set in the 1930’s in which three friends (Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, John David Washington) witness an abrupt murder and soon find themselves suspects themselves and soon uncover an outrageous spy plot involving a political war hero (Robert De Niro) and other various underworld characters (Michael Shannon, Remi Malek, and others). Director David O. Russell’s throwback to Golden Age screwball comedy is initially engaging and funny with its sharp acting and rapid-fire dialogue but soon rings hollow as you realize film is much more style than substance and doesn’t have much story underneath and runs out of steam (and laughs). Taylor Swift has a small but key role at film’s beginning.