Review: ‘The Nice Guys’ brings the audience back to 1977 for a hilarious mystery

Posted on May 27, 2016

By MARK VIOLA

“The Nice Guys” is everything I was hoping for and more. The often hilarious movie is from writer/director Shane Black, probably best known these days for directing “Iron Man 3” as well as the Robert Downey Jr.-starring “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.” Prior to that, he was was a well-regarded screenwriter who penned the first two “Lethal Weapon” movies.

“The Nice Guys” works on just about every level, with interesting characters, excellent acting, an intriguing mystery, solid action and lots of laughs. But while this is a very funny movie, it is not a comedy, taking itself and its characters seriously enough that we care about what happens to all of them, giving the affair a nice bit of weight so it sticks with you after leaving the theater.

The story is set in 1977 Los Angeles and centers on two men: Jackson Healy (Russell Crowe, “Noah”), an enforcer who makes money beating people up (usually bad guys, but not always), and Holland March (Ryan Gosling, “The Big Short”), a private eye who is limping along taking one unsolvable case after another.

When their respective cases, both revolving around a young woman named Amelia (Margaret Qualley, “The Leftovers”), put them on a collision course with each other, they quickly find themselves over their heads wrapped up in a conspiracy that is leaving bodies throughout Los Angeles.

Much of the movie rests on Crowe and Gosling, and their chemistry is amazing, producing both great laughs and some truly heartfelt moments. These are both broken men, trying–mostly in vain–to be good men. March recently lost his wife and with her the drive to actually be a good detective, even though he has the skills to do so. Healy always wanted to be a detective, but became an enforcer instead, leaving him wondering if he could have been more, as well as if it’s too late to still try.

The real star of the film, however, is young Angourie Rice (“These Final Hours”), who plays March’s 13-year-old daughter Holly. There are many examples of young characters being shoehorned into stories and dragging the entire enterprise down with them. This is definitely not one of those cases. She holds her own with her two older castmates and adds both humor and drama to the story. I also need to credit Black for writing her character in a way that allows Rice to
shine.

I should mention just how well the movie recreates its late 70s time period. Everything from the characters and their wardrobe to the billboards in the background make this feel like they’re in 1977 Los Angeles. They do such a good job that it often feels as if the movie was filmed back then too, a compliment I don’t give terribly often. (“Everybody Wants Some!” is another example from this year’s crop of
movies.)

“The Nice Guys” is a nearly perfect film, and while it might not have the special-effects budget or explosions of many of the summer’s big releases, it’s definitely worth checking out.

The film is rated R for violence, sexuality, nudity, language and brief drug use.

(This is a abbreviated version of the full review available in our printed or e-edition papers.)

 

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