Cert 15
116 mins
BBFC advice: Contains strong violence, sex references, strong language
I know I am going to seem like a music bore but if The Nice Guys is set in 1977 why is almost none of the soundtrack from that year?
For example, Rupert Holmes' tune Escape (The Pina Colada Song) is played in the background of one scene but was not released until September 1979.
Actually, the soundtrack is excellent (I am playing it on Spotify as I write) but is not contemporaneous (Kool And The Gang's Get Down On It was not released until 1981).
Aside of these musical faux pas, I have to say I found The Nice Guys enjoyably irreverent thanks to some super sharp writing by director Shane Black and Anthony Bagarozzi and the chemistry of its leads, Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe.
Gosling has already proved what a great actor he is thanks to a catalogue of diverse roles but I have not seen Crowe in such good form for a while.
The former plays a down-at-heel private eye who is unscrupulous when it comes to commissions (he agrees to take the case of a missing husband from a widow even though his ashes are on her mantelpiece).
The latter is a brutal enforcer who is literally paid to break bones.
The two clash over the case of a missing girl (Margaret Qualley) whom one is trying to find and the other is trying to protect.
The investigation opens a huge can of worms which not only prods at corruption in the movie industry but also in the Department Of Justice and at its head - the missing girl's mother (Kim Basinger).
The hapless duo get into a host of scrapes which often revolve around the private eye's old-beyond-her-years daughter (Angourie Rice).
Both Gosling and Crowe carry off black comedy with requisite straight-face and top-notch timing while dressed like 1970s mannequins.
I was pleased the film's finale hinted at a reunion. Let's hope the music is better synched next time.
Reasons to watch: compelling and irreverent
Reasons to avoid: its soundtrack is misplaced
Laughs: a couple of chuckles
Jumps: one
Vomit: yes
Nudity: yes
Overall rating: 8/10
Star tweet
Russell Crowe Dear United Kingdom and Ireland, here's a concept , spend Sunday night at the movies laughing your ass/tits/balls/bits off @NiceGuysMovieUK
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