The Nice Guys

photo courtesy of theniceguysmovie.com

     If you liked Iron Man 3, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, or any of director Shane Black’s trademark buddy-cop films, you’ll want to check out The Nice Guys. The Nice Guys pairs A-list stars Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling as would-be detectives who become involved in a scheme much bigger than either of them. It’s not quite as strong as you might hope, but it’s a funny and fun time at the movies for the casual viewer. For fans of the director or either co-star, it’s required reading.

photo courtesy of collider.com

     Nice Guys follows slightly-defective Private Detective Holland March (Gosling) and professional strong-arm Jackson Healy (Crowe). Together with March’s daughter, Holly March (played by the young Angourie Rice), they team up to investigate the disappearance of a former client Amelia (Margaret Qualley) and the apparent reappearance of adult film actress Misty Mountains (Murielle Telio) from beyond the grave.  As they piece together the clues, they encounter a sinister conspiracy, wacky hysterics, and even some life/family lessons.

     Before we go any further, know this: lest you fail to be persuaded by the “R” rating, The Nice Guys is not for kids. The movie is chock full of language, sexual innuendo and dirty humor, and tits (of a porn star, no less). So probably not the film to bring the whole family to—go send the kids to the inevitably mind-numbing and catastrophic Angry Birds Movie.

photo courtesy of blogs.indiewire.com

      Maybe the best thing about this movie is the performance of the two leads. Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling are in fine form. They’re (of course) good alone, but together they have an oddball chemistry that just works on some basic level. This is all the more interesting because they don’t seem like an obvious choice on paper, but their antics make the movie. Crowe lends an unamused, business-like tone to Healy, and Gosling doubles as scumbag dad/P.I. and ridiculous, mostly-useless partner.

      The film seems like a love letter of sorts to the cultural phenomenon that was the 70s. The setting of The Nice Guys is perfect for the characters—everything is loud, bright, and brash. It has everything from neon to porn films to well-dressed hit men (read: Matt Bomer as John Boy). Director Shane Black relishes in the weirdness and sexuality of the decade, and it’s fun to sit back and watch it all on display.

photo courtesy of rollingstone.com

     The Nice Guys is funny. Laugh-out-loud funny, even. Gosling accounts for most of the humor in one way or another, often through his terrible parenting. There’s slapstick, Deadpool-style crass, and plenty of humor that is plainly and unapologetically silly.

      It is not, however, hilarious throughout. I had a bit of a hard time nailing down the tone. More than once, all the merriment seems to come to a sudden halt for a serious scene. In other words, sometimes we’re supposed laugh because Gosling is a terrible parent, other times we’re supposed to feel sad about it. This may be because the movie seeks to weave a teensy bit of old-fashioned family values into the mix, which I didn’t think exactly fit the vibe of the movie—though some may reasonably disagree.

photo courtesy of forbes.com

      The movie’s other (potential) drawback is that it ends up being a rather formulaic buddy-cop film, despite the interesting changes in typical set pieces and the excellent lead performances. It’s all the more peculiar because the movie seems like it’s trying to subvert the conventions of the genre on more than one occasion—to hilarious effect—but more often than not, Nice Guys ticks the boxes. It’s an interesting and sometimes bizarre mix of predictable and unpredictable. This is not necessarily a flaw; there’s nothing wrong with an unashamed, sprawling buddy-cop hijinks film, especially when the surrounding set pieces are fresh and inviting.

      FINAL VERDICT: The Nice Guys is a good movie and a fun time at the theaters. If I’m a little split on it, it’s only because of the spectacular promise of the movie’s trailers, which, I think, prepared me for a slightly different movie than the one I saw. It may not have lived up to what I imagined and hoped it to be based on that presentation (for what it’s worth). That’s not altogether bothersome, though, because the finished product is one that packs a punch in its own right.