The Nice Guys is the latest movie written and directed by Shane Black, whose previous work includes such critical faves as Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and the original Lethal Weapon (the latter of which Black only wrote), in addition to the somewhat polarizing Marvel Studios sequel, Iron Man 3. Black has a fondness for making darkly comical buddy romps, as evidenced by his movies past, so The Nice Guys – a period crime mystery/action/comedy that pairs Oscar-winner Russell Crowe with Oscar-nominee Ryan Gosling as its leads – is a project that very much lies in Black’s wheelhouse as a storyteller.
Nice Guys takes place in Los Angeles circa 1977, where somewhat bumbling private eye Holland March (Gosling) ends up having to work alongside not-so-friendly hired enforcer Jackson Healy (Crowe) on a case that revolves around a missing young woman and the mysterious (possibly related) death of an LA porn star. Warner Bros. Pictures has now released the second theatrical trailer for Nice Guys online, and you can watch it above.
Whereas the first-released Nice Guys trailer (and its red band theatrical counterpart) highlighted the initial meeting between March and Healy – quick establishing that the duo are, in every meaning of the phrase, a mismatched pairing – and shed some light on the case that brings them together, the newest trailer is devoted pretty much solely to the trouble that March and Healy get into during their job together. That includes shoot-outs, car crashes, nearly getting shot (many times), having to dispose of dead bodies, and what appears to be a scene where March and Healy are “tripping out” in their car Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas-style (complete with hallucinations like a giant bee) – among other shenanigans.
Black the filmmaker, when he’s not making Marvel superhero films, has more of a cult following that a mainstream one, but if you’re among those who’ve enjoyed his previous work (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang in particular) then there’s a good chance that The Nice Guys currently ranks among your most anticipated movies of the summer film season (if not the year). Indeed, oddball buddy duos, dark humor, and neo-Noir elements are all things that Black is known for handling well, and The Nice Guys looks to serve up all that and then some – including, no doubt, the reference(s) to Christmas that have become Black’s calling card over the years.
Nice Guys, in addition to Crowe’s L.A. Confidential costar Kim Basinger, features a supporting cast that includes Matt Bomer (Magic Mike XXL), Keith David (Community), Ty Simpkins (Jurassic World), and Margaret Qualley (The Leftovers) as Amelia, the missing young woman at the heart of the movie. Black’s film will open opposite the R-Rated raunch-comedy Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising and the family-friendly The Angry Birds Movie during its first weekend in theaters, but there’s not too much immediate overlap between those three movies’ target demographics to suggest the films cannot coexist in peace at the box office.
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The Nice Guys opens in U.S. theaters on May 20th, 2016.
