The Nice Guys (2016)

Content by Tony Macklin. Originally published on September 5, 2016 @ tonymacklin.net.

The Nice Guys is a glorious mess of a movie.

If you can't get on its idiosyncratic level, you'll probably think it's silly or dumb. But if you can lurch on to its level, it's a romp.

The Nice Guys, set in 1977, is a Buddy Movie about two mismatched guys, who partner up to try to solve a mystery. Jackson Healy (Russell Crowe) is the muscle man, and Holland March (Ryan Gosling) is a struggling private eye. Their initial meeting does not work out well for one of them.

But eventually they join up in a mission to find answers. They sometimes are accompanied by Holland's precocious, 13-year old daughter, Holly (Angourie Rice), who often seems wiser than either of them.

The destination is not important. The erratic journey is. And what a journey.

There may be missteps and stumbles, but The Nice Guys is not phony - due to its gifted actors. Crowe's rumpled Jackson and Gosling's banged-up Holland have wounded panache. There are glints of intelligence in their observations. And a little wit. And a generous helping of chemistry.

Both characters never seem comfortable in their environments. They strive to go forward.

Crowe captures the stubbornness of Jackson, and Gosling is amiably fretful, and does a terrific impression of Lou Costello. I half-expected him to call, "Hey, Abbott."

Angourie Rice plays the precocious Holly with great aplomb. And Matt Bomer - in a major change from his leading role in television's White Collar - is convincing as the withering hit man in The Nice Guys.

A lot depends on Shane Black's and Anthony Bagarozzi's screenplay. There is dopiness, but there's also freshness. There are surprises - the manner of two of the killings is unexpected.

There's also an awareness of language that's rare in movies today. Holland tells his daughter she can say anything, except she can't say, "and stuff." I'd add, "I mean," "you know," and "unbelievable."

It's worth noting that Black wrote the screenplay for Lethal Weapon (1987), which created the vibe of oddball chemistry between two men. It's repeated in The Nice Guys.

Shane Black directed The Nice Guys. He goes overboard in the climactic shoot-out at a LA auto show, where they're introducing 1978 models. But he does have a vivid sense of time and place. The cinematography by veteran Philippe Rousselot is evocative.

The screenplay prevails. One derivation of the word "nice" is from the Latin "nescient" - not knowing. If you ever want to give a compliment to someone you don't want to compliment, you can say, "She's nice."

The movie The Nice Guys is not nice.

It knows a lot.