Crowe and Gosling mesh well together as "Nice Guys"

It’s refreshing to see a film that lets a chemistry build naturally between the characters and not having it forced down your throat like so many other offerings these days.

There is a lot to like about The Nice Guys.

You have two great actors, Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling, in a 70’s LA period piece written and directed by Shane Black(Lethal Weapon). There will be humor, action and a little heart throughout this experience.

The guys are kind of an odd-couple but coming from a similar place. Russell Crowe is the stocky tough guy with a big heart that is grappling his way through life and Ryan Gosling is a goofy private eye that is trying to raise his teen daughter while juggling his cases. This is just a fun movie, it’s not “Lethal Weapon” caliber, but if you like these actors and detective themes with some humor thrown in, you will love it.

The tale takes place in the seedy underbelly of LA back in the day. Gangsters and porn stars collide during a series of murders and strange happenings. The search for a girl brings these two detectives together in unexpected ways.

It’s refreshing to see a film that lets a chemistry build naturally between the characters and not having it forced down your throat like so many other offerings these days. It’s kind of like film execs sit there and say, “hey so and so actor is hot right now. Let’s pair him with another actor making cash at the box office and we will worry about the story and other things later.” That is a stale plan at best.

Here, we have two actors that are proven talents and nothing about their friendship is rushed or feels forced. I have always enjoyed Shane Black’s style and I’m hopeful we will see these two characters again. The Nice Guys feels kind of like reading a great detective book with the added bonus of watching Gosling and Crowe do their thing on screen.

The Bottom Line: This is what it looks like, and will be a nice time at the theater.

MovieMark Grade: A