More action and drama than comedy

Rating: 7/10 (20 May 2016)

Shane Black's new film THE NICE GUYS is being billed as an "ACTION/COMEDY" and I think this is a mistake. When I think "ACTION/COMEDY" I think more of things like the Will Ferrell/Mark Wahlberg film THE OTHER GUYS or the upcoming Dwayne Johnson/Kevin Hart flick CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE. Basically, a comedy with action in it. THE NICE GUYS is a atmospheric period piece that blends drama, action and comedy. It is much more nuanced than the average "action/comedy" and, for the most part, succeeds in this nuance.
Set in 1977, THE NICE GUYS pairs Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe as they investigate a disappearance in Los Angeles. The more they dig into the case, the more the bodies pile up and the deeper the conspiracy goes.
The key to a film like this is the chemistry between the two leads and I am happy to report that Gosling and Crowe have pretty good chemistry with each other. While I thought Gosling was trying a bit too hard in the comedy areas (he managed the balance of comedy and drama better in THE BIG SHORT), the surprise to me was how easy the comedy parts seemed to come to Crowe while the dramatic parts showed off that he still has strong acting "chops".
Ultimately, where this film falls short for me is in the direction by Shane Black (the underrated Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and the overrated Iron Man 3). He has the "70's vibe down, no doubt about it. Where this film falters is it's continual shift of tone. Is it a comedy? Is it a serious action film? Is it a farce? Is it a drama? All of these elements are thrown onto the screen so it takes about 2/3 of the film to settle into what type of film it is - which I would call a dramatic action film with comedic overtones. And, by the way, there are 2 comedic moments in this movie that created huge, sincere belly laughs from me - I would argue that both of those moments are worth the price of admission alone.
Go for those moments, but stay for the friendship of Gosling and Crowe. You'll be entertained.
7 (out of 10) stars and you can take that to the Bank (of Marquis)