#340: THE NICE GUYS

2016
Directed by Shane Black
Mystery, Comedy, Action.

It feels like it's been a while since I had my last Ryan Gosling fix, but fortunately he has come back after a little break making The Big Short, and now this new film The Nice Guys. Here he is paired up with Russell Crowe, an actor I've always found to be very hit and miss. The Nice Guys is part Comedy, part Action and part Neo-Noir detective Drama. Set in 1978, it has a very vintage look and feel that was very well accomplished. Visually it reminded me of the films Anchorman and Boogie Nights, as the characters all wear their Disco influenced attires and go to seedy parties. 

Ryan Gosling plays a private investigator who is also a widow, left alone to look after his very mature 13 year old daughter. Russell Crowe's character isn't as fleshed out, with not a lot said about his personal life, but he essentially beats people up for money (I'm starting to see why they chose Russell Crowe for this role). At first he is sent to beat up Ryan Gosling for getting too deep into a missing persons case. Crowe comically breaks Gosling's arm in one of the funnier scenes in the film, and so they have fun with Gosling having to spend the entire film with his arm in a cast. Eventually the two "nice guys" end up working together when they realise they have the same pair of gangsters out to get them. They are also on a mission to try and find missing teenager Amelia.

The Nice Guys has two strong elements going for it. The first is that the acting is top notch. Gosling and Crowe have a very radiant chemistry on screen and make an unlikely good buddy duo. Certainly this is one of Crowe's best roles in a while now, and it seems naturally tailored to his personality. But the real star of the show is newcomer Angourie Rice, who plays Gosling's teenage daughter. Normally one of my pet peeves in cinema is children in leading roles, but she didn't annoy me one bit! The character is a little odd though, considering she is said to be 13, she looks closer to 16, but throughout the film she is seen driving cars, watching pornos and taking out bad guys. The running gag of the film is that she is better at solving the mystery than her PI dad is, and so she tags along for the entire film. I'm just not sure why they didn't make her character a bit older so that her personality traits were more fitting. The other strongest element of the film is that it has a pretty compelling mystery with some thrilling scenes. The best scene of the film takes place in a Playboy-esque mansion where a huge sex party is being held, and two have to interrogate people and search for clues. It definitely has nods to Film Noir and detective films. 

There were however some glaring issues with The Nice Guys. The biggest one being that, you could tell this film was attempting to be comedic all the way through, but I felt like so many of the "jokes" completely bombed. I laughed out loud only twice during the film, and I found the rest of the cinema were pretty quiet for most of the film too. The attempts at humour were so weak that I just couldn't understand why it needed to have Comedy parts at all. Especially when the writers have done a pretty good job coming up with a good Mystery/Thriller story. The drama elements work well too, with Gosling struggling to raise his daughter alone. The Nice Guys also feels the need to cram in big Action sequences. There are plenty of fist fights, gun shootouts and even a couple of car chases thrown in there. Again these Action scenes didn't really feel that necessary or add much to the film. In fact a rather large Action sequence near the end was so over the top and ridiculous that it ended up padding out the plot unnecessarily and I was just left wanting the film to reach it's conclusion. When the film does end, it throws in a sequelbaiting part which may be a little ambitious. 

Ultimately I have to say that I enjoyed The Nice Guys enough to recommend it. The Mystery plot is what compelled me the most, and the performances are very remarkable. Maybe others will enjoy the jokes and the big Action scenes more than I did, but for me they fell very flat. I think this film could have been improved with a re-edit, taking out some of the goofier parts and focusing more on the Mystery plot, and it would have been a tighter film. The movie definitely shares its blueprints with director Shane Black's earlier film Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. The Nice Guys is a good one watch film, but not great enough to be worth revisiting. 6/10.

#312: THIEF

1981

Directed by Michael Mann
Neo-Noir, Crime

Thief is the second film by US director Michael Mann, released in 1981. It stars James Caan in one of his finest roles as a hardass diamond thief. One of the many talking points about this film is how exquisitely beautiful the framing of the camera is. Michael Mann really established his signature visual style here, and you can tell he has painstakingly assembled every frame of the film. He uses lots of night time shots, capturing the city lights and rain drenched roads, making them look so vibrant. It adds a real chilling atmosphere to the film. His use of silhouette and light and shadow is just phenomenal also. A shot at the beginning of the film where James Caan talks to a fisherman looks absolutely stunning. This film has been given the loving HD treatment by Arrow Video, so picking up this Blu-Ray disc is a must!

Of course it is one thing to make a visually striking film, but Thief works on just about all fronts. In particular the score by German synthesiser pioneers Tangerine Dream works superbly well. It was quite a bold move to use this band, as their music is often associated with outer space, making them more suited to a Sci-Fi film, but somehow it works wonders in Thief. The score is used sparingly, but the opening scene where James Caan is cracking open a safe (using real tools) in particular is given that little something extra because of the fantastic score. 

But the thing that impresses most about Thief is what truly matters, a phenomenal central performance by James Caan and a well told story. I would consider Thief to be a sophisticated crime drama. Similarly to films such as Scarface and Taxi Driver, it follows the journey of a ruthless anti-hero, but presents him as a three dimensional character with hopes and dreams, highs and lows. James Caan completely nails the role and carries the film easily so there isn't a dull moment to be found. Thief is not a film that relishes in gunfights or car chases, it is a very character and dialogue driven film, paired with fantastic visual shots that enhance the mood the story.

Thief is one those all around packages that works at every angle you could care to analyse it at. A film that can easily stand up to the likes of Scorsese or Copolla, yet it's not a film I often hear being talked about. 8/10.

#306: THE KILLERS

1964

Directed by Don Siegel

Neo-Noir, Crime, Thriller

The Killers is the second major film adaptation of Ernest Hemmingway's short story, following the critically acclaimed 1946 version which was a major player in the Film Noir movement. Whilst the former black and white film lurked in the smoke and the shadows, this adaptation is in full colour and is actually quite a vibrant looking film. It looks especially stunning in the Arrow Academy Blu-Ray edition that I watched it in, with a loving and warm restoration. It looked so sharp on my TV that I was convinced the beads of sweat on Lee Marvin's forehead were actually drips of water on my TV screen! The Killers has the acclaim of being the first made for TV movie ever made, though it was soon released in cinemas too because it was deemed too violent for TV broadcasting at the time.

Like the Film Noir adaptation before it, The Killers is built on groundbreaking use of flashbacks and scenes told out of chronological order. Something that eventually became Quentin Tarantino's signature style. Instead of revolving around a boxer like in the original film, the protagonist Johnny North is a racing driver in this one. The loose premise is roughly the same, but Don Siegel (director of Dirty Harry and Invasion of the Body Snatchers) had the freedom to change the details and make it his own. I felt that the 1946 version of The Killers started very well, but ended up losing me by the end. It relies too heavily on the flashbacks and got a little muddled along the way. I felt like this version of the Killers was not only more coherent, but better paced too. Aside from a few hit and miss romantic scenes, and dated driving scenes with a car in front of a projector screen, The Killers flows incredibly well and is held together by brilliant dialogue, great performances and interesting subplots. As long as you pay attention to who is telling each flashback and where in the timeline each one takes place, the film won't lose you.

The Killers has a stellar cast that plays like a greatest hits collection of the 60s, with Lee Marvin, John Cassavetes, Angie Dickinson and future president Ronald Reagan in his last screen role, the only time he played a villain. But to me the absolute standouts were John Cassavetes as the rebellious and relentless racer Johnny North, and Claude Atkins, his manager and mechanic trying to keep him grounded, putting in an emotionally heavy performance. Lee Marvin and Clu Gulager play the ice cool killers who go around interrogating many of the characters in order to find the money. They dazzle on screen, dressed in suits and sunglasses. Not only was the whole structure of the story a huge inspiration on Tarantino, but the two killers in this film could have been kindred fathers of any of the Reservoir Dogs. Both this and the 1946 Killers adaptation are both very much a snapshot of the time they were made and both hold great merit. Which one you prefer is down to personal preference, but for me I think this version of The Killers wins because of a cooler cast, more coherent plot and it's a pretty badass film all around! 8/10.