I'll admit, there's probably at least one movie-related news item per day -- and usually quite a few more than one -- that gets my film-geek blood racing, but every once in a while one little scrap stands out that really floats my proverbial boat.

Today, it's the news -- via JoBlo.com and Collider -- that Shane Black has a new film in the works, his first since 2005's Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. I wouldn't hesitate to put Kiss Kiss up there with some of my favorite films of all time, and unlike most of the other flicks on that list (say, Taxi Driver or LoTR: Fellowship of the Ring), it's one that's not too depressing and/or long to watch multiple times in the same week, night, or whatever. The film, if you haven't yet seen it, is a comedic neo-noir that plants its feet firmly on the comedy side of things, paying loving tribute to "serious" private eye movies throughout -- and also, to a lesser but no less amusing extent, skewering the ever-loving crap out of Hollywood phoniness (which Black surely knew first-hand as the young, in-demand screenwriter of such action classics as Lethal Weapon and The Long Kiss Goodnight). Black's dialogue is some of the sharpest and funniest I've ever heard in a movie, and Robert Downey, Jr. is perfectly cast as the thief-turned-actor-turned-detective who carries us along through Black's self-reflexive, endlessly witty string of twists, double-crosses, and, uh, severed finger gags.

So, um, where were we? Oh right, Black's new movie. Well, actually, there isn't much to report on it as of yet, but what I do know is this: it's going to be called The Nice Guys, it'll be produced by long-time Black supporter Joel Silver, and -- best of all -- it's reportedly going to be another "detective story." I know lightning doesn't always strike twice with these things, but hey... it seems like Black has all his ducks in a row so far. Personally, I'm extremely happy that he's even getting the chance to give this genre another shot, since Kiss Kiss absolutely (and quite undeservingly) tanked at the box office. Here's hoping moviegoers will catch on this time around.
And, because I just couldn't end this post without it, here is just one of my favorite scenes from Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, featuring Downey and Michelle Monaghan. Did I mention I freakin' love this movie?