MOVIE REVIEW: THE NICE GUYS (2016)

From IMDB:

Storyline

Set against the backdrop of 1977 Los Angeles, The Nice Guys opens when single father and licensed PI Holland March (Gosling) is hired to investigate the apparent suicide of famous porn star Misty Mountains. As the trail leads him to track down a girl named Amelia (Qualley), he encounters less licensed and less hands-off private eye Jackson Healey (Russell Crowe) and his brass knuckles, both hired by the young hippie. However, the situation takes a turn for the worse when Amelia vanishes and it becomes apparent that March wasn't the only party interested. As both men are forced to team up, they'll have to take on a world filled with eccentric goons, strippers dressed as mermaids and even a possible government conspiracy.

70 Metascore From metacritic.com

Reviews 63 user | 151 critic

From Rotten Tomatoes:

MOVIE INFO

Shane Black (Iron Man 3) directs this police drama set in Los Angeles during the 1970s, and centering on a pair of detectives who stumble into a sprawling conspiracy while investigating the alleged suicide of a once-prominent female porn star. Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling top-line this Warner Bros. release that reunites Lethal Weapon scribe Black with that film's producer, Joel Silver. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Rating: R (for violence, sexuality, nudity, language and brief drug use)

Genre: Drama

Directed By: Shane Black

Written By: Shane Black, Anthony Bagarozzi

In Theaters: May 20, 2016 Wide

Runtime: 1 hr. 56 min.

Warner Bros. Pictures - Official Site

TOMATOMETER 90%

Average Rating: 7.6/10

Reviews Counted: 151

Fresh: 136 | Rotten: 15

Critics Consensus: The Nice Guys hearkens back to the buddy comedies of a bygone era while adding something extra courtesy of a knowing script and the irresistible chemistry of its leads.

AUDIENCE SCORE 

84% liked it

Average Rating: 4/5

User Ratings: 26,992

THE NICE GUYS OPENS IN THE US ON THE 20th OF MAY AND IN MALAYSIA ON THE 26th OF MAY. CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT WHEN IT OPENS NEAR YOU. 

From the man who directed the Ironman movie that had him destroy all his Ironman suits and wrote a bunch of fun buddy movies...

So this is the latest from Shane Black who directed Ironman 3 (2013) but who also wrote for movies like Lethal Weapon (1987), The Last Boy Scout (1991), Last Action Hero (1993) and The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996). That last one might not be on anyone's favourite action movie list but the others probably are, they were fun odd couple/buddy action movies and still are a lot of fun to watch. In fact the only movie that missing from that list is probably the Die Hard movies from that same period and you've got the makings of an action movie night that any action movie fan wouldn't mind having. Maybe. 

So The Nice Guys, a movie set in the late 70's about a wannabe investigator whose job mainly consist of beating up guys who bother girls and an investigator who is basically a drunk who takes advantage of his client while bumbling about trying to solve cases. It was supposed to be a TV series but the pilot didn't gain much traction so here it is on the big screen. According to the Wikipedia page for this movie some of the scenes in the movie was somewhat based on what happened to an actual person named Jay Joseph who was also a private investigator. Although after watching the movie it seems a little hard to believe. The difference between the supposed real person and the guys you see in the movie being that what happened to Jay Joseph happened in the 90's.

The Nice Guys is basically the odd couple action movie that we a lot of us grew up watching back in the 80's and 90's. It's got enough of a story to keep you interested but lighthearted enough to not be too dark and serious. It's the kind of movie you can just sit back, relax and watch. 

So here's a list of what I like about it. 

1. As mentioned before it's a throwback to the good old days of action movies and buddy movies of the 80's and 90's.
2. The story is interesting and deep enough without being too heavy and too serious. 
3. Found the use of the problems of the period in L.A. interesting, i.e., the smog, the auto industry's refusal to adopt certain technology which in this case is the catalytic converter.
4. The mixing of all things 70's, the music, the style, the clothes, the cars, the car industry, the growing porn industry. The production design, styling and all were fun to watch. 
5. The many, many references to the era like movie billboards, etc.
6. The main cast and their performance, Russell Crowe (Jackson Healy), Ryan Gosling (Holland March) and Angourie Rice (Holly March). Especially love the introduction of Holly into the buddy movie dynamic. It's interesting.

What I didn't like.

Basically because I live in a country that doesn't allow scenes that are too sexy those scenes get edited out and that makes me think I'm missing something. In the case of this movie since the porn industry and a porn film is used to push the story and plot somewhat the censored bits are quite a few and it makes for jumps in the scene. Maybe I've missed something maybe I didn't. But it sure feels like I missed something. 

I totally enjoyed The Nice Guys. It was a fun movie and a nice revisit to the action movies of the 80's and 90's. Totally loved the way Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling's chemistry and thought the inclusion of Holly into the mix was fresh. If you ask me I wouldn't mind watching a sequel to this movie, I think it'll be fun if they can get the right story for it. 

I'm giving this movie a good 3.5 out of 5. Well worth your money to go watch it on the big screen. 

I've uploaded a few videos and trailers to let you get a good feel for the movie but trust me it's a fun movie.

THE NICE GUYS IS DISTRIBUTED IN MALAYSIA BY TGV PICTURES SO BE SURE TO HEAD ON OVER TO TGV.COM.MY TO GET YOUR TICKETS TO WATCH IT WHEN IT OPENS.