Hammerman Ikon

Hammerman Ikon Film Guide

The Nice Guys
2016
****
Director: Shane Black
Cast: Russell Crowe, Ryan Gosling, Angourie Rice, Matt Bomer, Margaret Qualley, Keith David, Kim Basinger, Yaya DaCosta, Beau Knapp, Lois Smith

It's 1977 in Los Angeles. Jack Healy and Holland March are a pair of second rate private eyes who team up to find a young woman who has left a trail of bodies behind her. Shane Black went on a short but very successful sidetrack with Iron Man 3, but now he's back to doing what he does best or playing it safe, depending on your viewpoint. Like, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, his directorial debut, this is a twisty neo-noir with quick bursts of violence and plenty of wisecracking humour. Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling have great chemistry. Crowe plays the sharper one of the two detectives, but even he becomes oddly dumb when the plot demands it.