For those of you out there that do not know who Shane Black is, he has written some pretty amazing films like Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Iron Man 3 (debatable), Lethal Weapon 2, and so much more. That is why I chose to watch his latest film The Nice Guys for today’s movie. It is the late 1970’s in Los Angeles, California and things are not very easy in the big city as they are dealing with issues of smog and a dead female porn star. To top it all off, two private eyes that obviously do no match well together in Holland March (Ryan Gosling) and Jackson Healey (Russell Crowe) are assigned to the case together. It is there that the duo run into a whole mess of a situation that they didn’t see coming which includes the DA and hitmen. The film also stars Angourie Rice (Walking With Dinosaurs) as Holly March, Matt Bomer (Magic Mike XXL) as John Boy, Margaret Qualley (The Leftovers) as Amelia, Keith David (Men At Work) as Older Guy, Beau Knapp (Southpaw) as Blueface, Murielle Telio (The DUFF) as Misty Mountains, Kim Basinger (L.A. Confidential) as Judith Kuttner, Jack Kilmer (The Stanford Prison Experiment) as Chet, Yaya DaCosta (Tron: Legacy) as Tally, and Lois Smith (Falling Down) as Mrs. Glenn.
There wasn’t much to this film that I didn’t like, it was very enjoyable to watch. Ryan Gosling’s stock is moving up in my book as just about every movie he is in I love his performance. He is probably my favorite character in this film because he is the perfect opposite of what Russell Crowe is. Russell Crowe’s character is the bad ass tough one while Ryan Gosling’s is afraid of his own shadow. It’s very funny and I think it’s a very good selling point for the film in general because their chemistry is undeniable. It’s like the perfect buddy movie for those that love them. I loved the aesthetics of the film because it looked and felt like the 70’s as you are watching all of the cool outfits and hairdos not to mention all of the pop culture references. Even all of the nuances were right on target from not being able to say the lords name in vain and so much more. The film definitely kicks off in style with a naked porn star dead on top of a car as she literally drove through someone’s house. So you an definitely imagine where it went from that point. I honestly thought that the film was very funny and definitely one worth seeing if you are a fan of either Crowe or Gosling. It’s available in Redbox and where ever else you watch movies so go and watch it. I am going to give the film an A- for a final grade.
Just about every month, I have watched a different animated film so I decided to keep it going by watching another one for the month of April. The film I chose for today is called The Nut Job and it’s one that wasn’t done by Disney or Sony. The film follows Surly (Will Arnett), a squirrel who never seems to get anything right in his life and to the point that everyone in the park hates him. One day after a routine heist of nuts goes wrong, Surely is banished out of the park and all of the creatures in the park are left with no food to survive winter. A store that is being disguised as a nut store, but really is a front for a ban heist is opened nearby and Surly will try everything he can to pull off the biggest heist to regain the trust of the park. The film also stars Liam Neeson (Taken) as Raccoon, Brendan Fraser (School Ties) as Grayson, Katherine Heigl (Knocked Up) as Andie, Stephen Lang (Avatar) as King, Maya Rudolph (Bridesmaids) as Precious, Jeff Dunham as Mole, Gabriel Iglesias (Magic Mike XXL) as Jimmy, Sarah Gadon (Enemy) as Lana, and the film was directed by Peter Lepeniotis Gotta Catch Santa Claus).
What is the great thing about all or most animated films these days? Every great or good character has a comedic relief sidekick that keeps the audience glued and kids laughing. In this film, it would have to be Buddy The Rat who is constantly there to help his friend Surly no matter what. The one thing about this film that I really liked is that every character is very likable even the villain Raccoon (voiced by Liam Neeson). This was definitely an interesting and funny animated film for one that wasn’t made by either Disney Pixar or Sony, but it didn’t have a heck of a lot of laughs. It was definitely entertaining and it didn’t bore me, but it just didn’t have a lot of those funny moments in it like some of Disney’s films. I wondered why Psy’s music and song Gangham Style was attached to this film and it’s because it was funded by a bunch of different Korean producers hence the appearance he makes as an animated character. I was also surprised to see that Jeff Dunham voice acted in this film because I thought he only did the puppet gigs, but he was great as the mole. This is definitely a film that will more than likely fun for the kids and it will teach you the lesson that no matter how much of a screw up you think you are you can always redeem yourself. The film is available right now on Netflix as we speak so check it out. I am going to give the film an B for a final grade.
365moviesin365dayschallenge 