Film Preview: The Nice Guys (2016)

Page Revisions:

(December 6, 2015) Original
(January 31, 2016) New Trailer (#2)
(March 27, 2016) New Trailer (#3) / New Poster (#2)
(May 8, 2016) New Trailers (#4 & #5) / New Posters (#3-#11) / Added Image Gallery

Release Date:

May 20, 2016

Synopsis:

From IMDb: “A private eye investigates the apparent suicide of a fading porn star in 1970s Los Angeles and uncovers a conspiracy.”

Poster Rating: B / C+ / C+ (9)

SEE ALL POSTERS BELOW
Review: (#1) The ’70s style is attractive and Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling are prominently and efficiently displayed, but the lack of background details hinders the overall design.

(#2) Not nearly as visually appealing as the first design, the creators double down on the period setting elements and make a design that’s not entirely useless, but not entirely interesting either.

(#3-#11) Each of these character posters is modestly witty and somewhat clever. They are amusing enough to tie the film together without requiring too much effort.

Trailer Rating: B+ / B / B- / B+ / B-

SEE ALL TRAILERS BELOW
Review: (#1) The bathroom stall scene alone should guarantee the film’s box office potential, but apart from that, the blend of period style and jarring violence strengthen both the fact that it’s a Red Band trailer and looks like it could be darkly funny.

(#2) Wearing off the initial interest the first trailer provided, this more in depth offering keeps the same once-funny gags in place, but neglects to add anything of substance to generate more interest in the film.

(#3) As I highlighted in my review of the second trailer, the more details we get, the less interesting the film looks. The jokes aren’t nearly as amusing and other than seeing Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling playing semi-comedic types doesn’t carry nearly the weight as previously.

(#4) Although the scenes in the trailer are all previously used, the adoption of a ’70s era trailer style is a clever conceit that ultimately works quite well. While the type of content on display would likely not have been included had this trailer been made 40 years ago, it nevertheless works in context.

(#5) Another trailer that sticks to the status quo quite effectively, leading the viewer to understand where the film is coming form and where it’s heading to. Most of the humor and content is from prior efforts, so it isn’t remotely the most original, but that may not be that important when trying to get people into the theaters.