Sometimes we tend to forget that having fun at the movies is a necessity. Fear not. Director Shane Black (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Iron Man 3) remembers all too well with The Nice Guys, a retro detective noir that’s playful, witty, clever, and delivers a knockout duo to do the heavy hitting. A highly unlikely but fit-to-perfection pairing, Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling are exceptional with their lethal dose of lexical interplay and uproarious physicality. Black’s throwback buddy action comedy finds its mojo pronto and never comes close to losing it.
Holland March (Gosling) is a smart P.I. who never passes on a drink. He’s still dealing with his wife’s death, raising his daughter Holly (a marvelous Angourie Rice) on his own. Wait, that’s a lie. She’s a self-sufficient little girl who is far from getting her drivers license, yet she’s become her dad’s designated driver. Holly tussles with her feelings of how her father may slowly be ruining her life before she can even begin to live her own, yet at the same time, being obtrusively enthused about the shenanigans he’s involved in.
Holland’s cases aren’t too difficult. Most of his hires come from the elderly looking for someone who has been dead for years and are the only ones who aren’t aware of it. It’s easy money for a lunkhead job. Same shit, different day when Mrs. Glenn (Lois Smith) sends him to find the whereabouts of her niece. Or so he thinks. A dead porn star and a sought after girl named Amelia (Margaret Qualley), who turns out to be the daughter of a Department of Justice honcho (Kim Basinger), puts Holland and Jackson Healy (Crowe), a paid bruiser who lets his knuckles do the talking, on an intricate collision course.
Jackson is apathetic, rarely showing contentment for anything. Obviously then, the role is perfect for Crowe. Actually that’s said without any sarcasm, seeing his grumbling succinct and tone is seamless when sparring with Gosling’s endless energy and goofiness. Holland and Jackson have an abundantly different approach to everything, setting up a dynamic, slaphappy partnership that plies a rollicking kick to the face.
Black keeps his story atmospheric, clasping the 70’s and the L.A. smell of cynicism and sleaziness. His genius bursts behind each action sequence and in every facetious zinger. The combo of Crowe and Gosling works astonishingly well, relentlessly feeding off one another’s antics. It’s clear to see The Nice Guys is confident in how it handles its affairs. Rightfully so. A cool, sharp, and staggering showoff of a movie.
Brandon Vick is the resident film critic of the SoBros Network, and star of Brandon’s Box Office In Your Mouth. Follow him on Twitter@SirBrandonV and be sure to search #VicksFlicks for all of his latest movie reviews.
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