The Nice Guys (2016)
They're not that nice
Buddy cop flicks are fun, haven't seen one in a while. This one came highly praised by a YouTube reviewer that I follow, so I added to the old list of movies to watch. It's day has arrived, let's see if this 70-style detective picture has enough heart to keep my thoughts in line with that reviewer's opinion. Maybe this time nice guys won't finish last?
There's mystery involved in this plot. You can think at it, and really that will get you to varying degrees of fun depending on how quick you can figure it out. That being said, as soon as a certain character came into play, I knew exactly who the big bad of the movie was going to be. On the other hand, what I didn't figure out until it was actually spelled out to me (at least in it's primary desire) was the actual logic behind the events of the movie. It seems really simple at first glance, and by all means could stay that way, but they actually lair a relatively complex amount of reasoning behinds the reasons and motivations of the plots. So there's a surprise, if you were expecting this to be a confusing slew of dumb. Oh, the plot also involves the porn industry in some ways, so expect to see some boobs now and then.
The actors doing a good job helps make this movie what it is. Although not all the jokes are going to be found funny, a good deal of them hit to the point that the general mood of the movie is actually quite upbeat. Some of it is the interaction between the two mains, some of it comes up from actual jokes of the reoccurring types (such as a bit about falling from things), and still some just comes up from characters actions. There's a couple of fun scenes as far as the comedy goes, one in particular takes place on a set of stairs with a bunch of protesters "playing dead."
Not to be left out of other crime flicks, there's plenty of action around as well. We've got a handful of gunfights beyond the halfway point, and even some brawls spread throughout. The action is shot nicely, pretty stable and usually in a manner that gives you an idea of where things are in conjunction with each other. There's some mild car action as well, although most of that is simply one-car crashes, not so much chases and pursuits. It might not be the most exciting stuff out there, but it holds up pretty well against all the detective and other moments of plot.
The heroes, guys but not necessarily nice.
Despite the title, the main characters aren't really all that nice. The actors do a great job, but it might be hard for some to really get behind these characters. The daughter is probably the most likeable character, even though she has an attitude of her own. She actually factors into both the plot and some of the jokes as well, and might even be one of the more useful characters in some scenes. The other daughter, although important to the plot and has some decent thought out actions, is essentially just a pretty McGuffin for the plot to focus on. It's probably one of the crappier characters as far as things go - although the big bad is pretty cookie-cutter thin in logic as well.
There isn't really a whole lot of things I can really pull out to say I didn't like about this movie. It isn't perfect, I don't really feel that this is a movie that I'm going to watch every year or something like that, but it is really well put together. Costumes are kind of plain in the sense that nothing is outlandish - it's all pretty 70's. That means that it isn't bad at all and it fits the setting quite well, but outside of "that's a pretty dress" nothing really stands out.
Progression goes about moving along pretty well. There's a little bit of narration here and there, but after things get revved up it gets left behind as it becomes unnecessary. Although most the movie is pretty well grounded in a real sort of thing, there is one scene that comes out of nowhere and will make you wonder if your still in the same movie or not. It's explained eventually, but man is it straight out from nowhere - and then used as a gag in another scene later down the road. They do a pretty good job of that sort of thing - making things come up again later, so if you've been paying attention it all seems to just logically flow together.
Two daughters, helpful in their own ways.
It's a fun little movie - won't be for everyone though. You'll have to be able to stomach some topless women and some violence to really appreciate it, but if you got that then you should have a blast. I'd wager it's easily worth a rental for those looking for a comedy mystery with some action. The acting is good, the mood is good, and the thing is a fine piece of work.