Nice Girls is an action-comedy film in French that was released on Netflix in August 2024. Noémie Saglio, who also directed The Hook Up Plan, is the director. Starting off, the film promised to deliver a fast-paced female led police cop adventure on The French Riviers, however it did not meet expectations. Instead, it offered political satire, diverse cast and glittering locations.
The film does offer nice visuals and charm, but those aspects are not enough to redeem social commentary. It falls short in many departments including merging eye catching locations with great scenic storytelling.
What should have been an empowering tackle on stereotype subjects felt jumbled due to a mix of confused tone filled subplots along with lackluster chemistry between the leading duo.Compared to the other regions, the French girls copes areas do offer for some exploration.
Synopsis
The story follows Léo, a brash, confident police officer based in Nice, played by Alice Taglioni. For Lèo, solving cases comes with honorary rewards which include, but are not limited to, getting recognition from the Mayor. Her steady world is turned upside down when she learns of the murder of her long time friend and fellow cop Ludo in Hamburg.
Believing there is more to the case, Léo decides to investigate the death on her own. However, her boss, Commissioner Hernandez, has other ideas: she assigns Mélanie, an overqualified and overly professional officer who claims to be from Germany. In truth, Mélanie is not at all German; she’s a Parisian French officer who has been politically and competitively mandated to help on the case from her superiors.
At the very start of the story, Léo and Mélanie both represent opposites. Léo is reactive, brash, and unapologetically blunt; while Mélanie is a quiet, methodical, and rule-abiding individual. Against their better judgement, the duo is eventually forced to cooperate after realizing Ludo’s murder is part of a larger scheme that includes a murdered climate activist, a violent assassination planned during an international summit, and an eco-political scandal aimed at the electric vehicle industry.
From the depths of the Riviera’s criminal underbelly, high-speed automobile pursuits, to face-offs with professional assassins, do the pair literally go through in their investigation. In the process, they grudgingly acknowledge and respect each other’s skills, officially becoming collaborators in both the complex crime and enduring the treacherous tangle of corruption.
Cast and Characters
Léo as played by Alice Taglioni: The emotional core of the film, Taglioni captures a fierce and independent woman whose pain is buried beneath a façade of sarcasm and bravado. Her performance is vibrant and rather flamboyant, breathing life into her character even when the narrative fails to deliver.
Stéfi Celma as Mélanie: Celma plays the more rational and intellectual counterpart. Her conduct features control, grace, and softness which provides balance to Léo’s wildness.
Baptiste Lecaplain as Bat Mareschi: An amiable former hacker-turned-informant who provides some humorous light-heartedness while also being pivotal in decrypting some of the clues pertaining to the conspiracy.
Noémie Lvovsky as Commissioner Hernandez: A police manager for other branches who micromanages inter-agency politics. What can be the soft side of her is very much absent here, especially when it comes to indulging in feelings – which professionally should not be a concern.
Katrina Durden as Kim: A hired killer who features in the conspiracy. Her scenes provide some of the physical danger and tension.
In the film’s supporting roles, Jess Liaudin and Franz-Rudolf Lang depict characters who add depth to the film’s political and criminal elements.
Direction, Tone, and Cinematography
Noémie Saglio attempts to blend elements of action-comedy with political satire that is heavily inspired by Hollywood buddy-cop films such as The Heat and Rush Hour. While some flashes of humor and socially salient ideas emerge, the film’s tone is bipolar — it shifts from slapstick and deadpan to emotional and vice versa with little to no transitions. The film does not successfully balance bitterness humor and politically heavy moments, leading to an emotionally and politically charged experience that comes off as uneven.
As in other regards, the film is visually striking. The sun-drenched coastline of Nice is breathtakingly beautiful, and is complemented by aerial shots of more intimate street life, showcasing sleek bus interiors that add to the film’s stylish veneer. Though the film does not reinvent action sequences, it does stage them well, including foot and car chases that are effective at maintaining energy.
The brisk editing within the film keeps the pacing fairly consistent when moving from clue to confrontation, however, there are moments that feel too fast paced. The subplot featuring assassinations within the electric car industries active politics comes off as underdeveloped, yet overly complicated at the same time.
Themes and Subtext
Nice Girls at it’s core tells a story about women attempting to navigate and establish themselves within predominantly masculine realms like police departments, intelligence services, and crime syndicates. And how proficiency does not manifest uniformly. Léo and Mélanie’s partnership showcases this by exhibiting how two opposing views on justice and professionalism can come together if there is mutual trust.
Another aspect is the comment on environmental concerns in the film which features a subplot about the killing of an activist and capitalist sabotage of climate changes policy. While relevant, the undertones get buried beneath layers of misdirection and unnecessary characters which do not allow the film to make any strong or coherent statement.
There are attempts at political satire, particularly on the topical issues of policing of police and international relations, but they feel half-baked. Humor about political correctness gone too far, European caricatures, and slow governments is stale or obvious.
Reception
Both critics and the general public did not respond well to Nice Girls. Most viewers enjoyed the efforts to develop an action-comedy around women in Europe, but criticized the execution. Relatively positive comments were directed at Taglioni and Celma for performing credibly and charismatically.
Nonetheless, adversaries highlighted the film’s chaotic plot, stale humor, and lack of chemistry amongst the leads as key shortcomings. Some critics suggested the script was riddled with cliches and did not do enough to flesh out its characters beyond a basic conflict.
In any case, the film achieved a moderate level of success on Netflix due to its short runtime, lighthearted tone, and pleasant setting. It served decently as a relaxed viewing option for followers of foreign films or for viewers considering a more laid-back action movie with a female spin.
Conclusion
Nice Girls is a uniquely warm hearted crime comedy that endeavors to offer something novel. Although it features a beautiful cast and even more stunning visuals, the shifting tone leaves much to be desired as does the meandering plot.
The film might not hit the sweet spot for diehard fans of action comedies but the unique attempt to add new narratives to international action cinema is something that should be appreciated. Nice Girls is bound to the filler collection of most thrill seekers, but those seeking unconventional stylized action are bound to appreciate the attempt, even if it misses the mark.
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