The Nice Guys Review: 4 Ups And 1 Down

2. The Setting Is Beautifully Recreated

I saw The Nice Guys the day after the disappointing X-Men: Apocalypse and despite being a completely more entertaining film, what really stood out was how much better Black got his setting. Bryan Singer barely remembered he was making a period piece (evidenced by its modern-day-set marketing), but Black's intoxicated by the seventies here.

Visually it's all vibrant colours and garish set design, but it's the feel he most gets right; it's not a caricature, with everyone in flares talking about major, culture-changing events at every opportune moment, but a heightened recreation. The music really helps - the soundtrack for this is a knock-out, ensured by how each song is worked into the movie, scoring action and increasing tension, rather than just allowing for a solid Sounds Of The 70s "Music from the Motion Picture" CD.

It's not just time era that The Nice Guys has going for it though. The steaming, smog-covered L.A. feels incredibly authentic too (bar some clearly-CGI wide-shots).