LOS ANGELES, May 15 — Find out about the comedic crime thriller whose director is, in Hollywood circles, as big of a deal as the film’s more recognisable stars, with our quick three-minute preview for Cannes premiere The Nice Guys.

Who’s in it and what’s it about?

It’s 1970s Los Angeles, and Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling are for-hire debt collector Jackson Healy and private investigator Holland March.

They’ve got to find out what really happened in the disappearance of a young woman, Amelia, but find themselves stumbling into a veritable web of corruption.

As well as Academy Award winner Crowe and multiple Golden Globe nominee Gosling, the film also recruits Angourie Rice — a revelation in Australian film The Final Hours — as March’s daughter Holly.

Golden Globe winner Matt Bomer of TV series The Normal Heart comes in as threatening, chisel-jawed hitman John Boy, there’s Margaret Qualley from TV’s award winning The Leftovers as Amelia, and Crowe’s Oscar-winning co-star from L.A. Confidential, Kim Basinger, as Amelia’s mother and a high-ranking judge.

Who’s behind it?

Director Shane Black and producer Joel Silver are two of the most recognised names in Hollywood.

Black became a record-breaking scriptwriter in the late 1980s and early 90s for action movies Lethal Weapon, The Last Action Hero, The Long Kiss Goodnight and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, the last also marking the start of his writer-director career.

Iron Man 3 followed and after The Nice Guys there’s The Predator in 2018.

Co-writer Anthony Bagarozzi, likewise no stranger to huge script deals, had advised Black on Kiss Kiss Bang Bang process. As for Joel Silver, he started working with Black on Lethal Weapon; he also produced the Matrix and Lord of the Rings (as well as Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.) The trio have been developing The Nice Guys together for over ten years.

When’s it out?

French and Belgian wide releases coincide with the film’s Cannes premiere on May 15, with international rollout beginning over the next week, including theatres in the US and Canada, Singapore, and the Netherlands; the Philippines, Australia, and Vietnam are among those joining the week after, while Germany, the UK and Ireland, Russia and Brazil come on board the first week of June.

Trailers, please.

Here’s a link to Warner Bros’ YouTube playlist, starting at the end with the film’s final trailer. Scroll back through the list for more, including TV clips, an SNL spot, a retro trailer and a red band promo reel. — AFP-Relaxnews