Warner Bros. Pictures/Silver Pictures
Directed/Written by Shane Black
Starring Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling
I'd like to start off by saying I love the work of Shane Black. His character in 1987's 'Predator' always got a chuckle out of me and then he moved on to screenwriting (a job I'm most fond of in the industry.). 'Lethal Weapon' really took off with Black and he began to bring some great stories out there, with dialogue and style that I rarely see in the action film genre. That's not to say he has been perfect (Last Action Hero) but he brings another one to us today and is both the writer and director with 'The Nice Guys'.
Russell Crowe plays a threat-for-hire, which is essentially someone who beats up someone that may be causing problems for others. He seems to love this job, despite its empty nature but you soon begin to see the cracks as he just wants to feel useful to someone and actually protect rather than just be muscle. When one of his clients goes missing, a young girl involved in a large conspiracy involving the 70's pornography ring Crowe teams up with an alcoholic private detective (after breaking his arm in the opening) to uncover the truth.
These two work really well together, with Crowe showing his fire hasn't left him yet. It's interesting to see him in the opposite position that you would think of in one of his usual action roles. He has true emotions and wants to find this missing girl because of more than money, he wants to do the right thing just to do the right thing. It's here that Gosling actually gets the negative characteristics for the most part. He's an alcoholic, he neglects his daughter (who is almost like Penny from 'Inspector Gadget' by the way.), and he really only cares about being paid for his case and his time.
The strangest part of all is that while Crowe does grow, Gosling essentially stays the same which is unusual even in drama films, however it works for him and this film. You will notice off the bat some of Mr. Black's typical tropes (Christmas, Los Angeles, and a topless woman crashing to her death in the opening just to name a few.) and his usual sharp and humorous dialogue. He is also one of the few writers in the action genre I know to make horrific violence somehow less impactful and sometimes even downright funny. The best example of this involves throwing a murdered dead body over a hill only for it to fall right into a party picnic table. Horrific? Yes. Hilarious? Yes.
The film moves at a really great pace as well, which is needed more in crime films I think. Die Hard films and those similar to them I don't understand why some are more than 2 hours. You need to keep going like constant gunfire (see what I did there? anyone? Eh, whatever.). If any negatives were to be found, I would say some situations involving Gosling's daughter caused me to cringe the most. The character is only 13 and she has a friend tossed through a pane of glass by an assassin which is extreme to watch, especially in films today. She also eavesdrops on her father at a pornography party house and is seen watching a porno film with some perverts and a drugged up actress. These scenes are very uncomfortable and rubbed me the wrong way. You can judge for yourself though.
The other major negative I had was that while the film wraps up nicely enough, there is still so much either unresolved or consequences of the characters actions not amounting to anything due to the film's climax reveal. Some actions that took place seemed pointless after that reveal, however it also gave the film a more realistic ending and I suppose you could add that to the positive side.
Overall, if you enjoy 'Lethal Weapon' or buddy cop films of the sort, you'll probably like this one as well. It fits right in with the greats and is well worth seeing and I hope to see Shane Black's next film 'The Predator', a reboot yes but the talent behind it will make it worthwhile in my book.
4 1/2 out of 5
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