‘Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice’ Review: Gangsters + Time Travel + Vince Vaughn x 2 = a Great Comedic Thriller

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Eiza Gonzalez and James Marsden in Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice

Published Mar 26, 2026, 4:09 PM EDT

Ross Bonaime is the Senior Film Editor at Collider. He is a Virginia-based critic, writer, and editor who has written about all forms of entertainment for Paste Magazine, Brightest Young Things, Flickchart, The Free Lance-Star, and more. Ross graduated from George Mason University with a focus in communications and journalism and a minor in film and video studies.

Ross is a Tomatometer-approved critic, a member of the Washington DC Area Film Critics Association, and a member of the Critics Choice Association. He has loved movies ever since he saw Cinderella in the theater as a kid, he can quote 10 Things I Hate About You and Wet Hot American Summer from memory, and is fascinated by all things Georges Méliès and Charlie Chaplin.

On the surface, Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice from writer-director BenDavid Grabinski seems like it would be just a normal gangster film, but almost immediately, it dissuades you of your preconceived notions, and shows you that you’re in for a great time. Sure, there are gangsters and gunfights and assassins in Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice, but this is also a film that begins with Ben Schwartz singing Billy Joel’s “Why Should I Worry?” from 1988’s animated Disney classic, Oliver & Company, while in a lab that includes a giant reference to Lost right behind him during his performance. With Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice, Grabinski has taken the bones of a gangster movie and added laugh-out-loud humor, wild references, needle drops, and time travel, and blended them into one of the most fun films to come out in 2026.

'Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice' Tells a Gangster Story With a Time-Travel Twist

James Marsden is Quick Draw Mike, who is trying to get out of the gangster business. He’s been seeing Alice (Eiza González), the wife of his boss, higher-up gangster Nick (Vince Vaughn), and they just want to get out of this life. On the night Mike and Alice have planned a tryst, Nick shows up at Mike’s door asking him for help one last time. Mike reluctantly agrees, but Nick brings Mike to his own home, telling Mike to chloroform whoever answers the front door (after a lengthy explanation to Mike of what chloroform actually is). But Mike finds…Nick at the front door — a different Nick.

The first Nick explains to Mike that he’s actually a time traveler who came back six months to save Mike's life. This is the night that Mike dies, and it’s weighed on Nick ever since. It turns out Alice’s friend, Symon (Schwartz), made a time machine using Nick’s money, and when he went to his lab to collect, Nick found himself traveling six months in the past to right this wrong. This night is also when crime boss Sosa (a ludicrously fun Keith David) is celebrating his son, Jimmy Boy (Jimmy Tatro), getting out of jail after six years. Sosa is trying to find the person who ratted out his son, and Mike is being framed for it. Sosa has sent out an assassin known as “The Barron” to take care of Mike, all while Sosa throws a party for Jimmy Boy. And an After Party. And an After After Party. Followed by the After After After Party.

To protect Mike from dying again, Future Nick kidnaps Present Nick, and tries to keep Mike and Alice safe while trying to take out The Barron before it’s too late. While doing this, Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice takes us on an adventure of corrupt cops, ludicrously-named low-ranking gangsters, mystery assassins, and yes, time travel.

'Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice' Is Like a Time-Traveling Shane Black Movie

Grabinski has a ridiculous amount of fun with its concept. Not only does he get to play within the gangster sandbox, but this story also allows him to toy with time-travel tropes, without having to get into the nitty-gritty details of how it works — all while throwing in as many pop culture references as possible. Grabinski makes Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice a film where a hilarious conversation about which boyfriend is the best for Rory on Gilmore Girls can actually become an important plot detail later on, or the use of Oasis’ “Don’t Look Back in Anger” can lead to a surprisingly touching moment late in the film. Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice could’ve very easily felt like a hat on a hat on a hat, but Grabinski combines all these wild ideas into one story, and it just works beautifully.

In many ways, Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice feels like a throwback, specifically to a time when a fantastic action-comedy like this could’ve thrived in theaters. The action is fast, fun, and over-the-top, the comedy is genuinely hysterical, and this cast is a blast to watch. When watching Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice, it’s hard not to think of the films of Shane Black, movies like The Nice Guys or Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, who knew how to balance action and comedy in equal amounts and with style. This is only the second film from Grabinski, after 2021’s Happily, and it’s truly impressive just how much Grabinski attempts to do here, and does so impeccably well. This is a complex blend of danger and fun, action, comedy, and romance, and several different genres, and Grabinski manages to find the sweet spot in between all these many, many ideas.

Vince Vaughn, James Marsden, and Eiza González Are Fantastic

James Marsden, Eiza González, and Vince Vaughn in Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice

Grabinski also knows that, amongst all the genre trappings, Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice is also maybe at its best when it’s just watching Vaughn, Marsden, and González playing off each other and the incredible dynamics he’s set up. As previously mentioned, watching these four fight over who is Rory’s best boyfriend isn’t just a hell of a lot of fun, it also tells us quite a bit about who these characters are. Even with everything going on in this story, it’s again a feat that Grabinski’s script is just as compelling when it centers on fun conversations and brilliant character interactions.

Marsden and González have great chemistry here, yet they’re never fully defined by this secret relationship. Despite his usually violent job, Mike is a nice guy who takes a little while longer than most to really pick up what’s going on time-travel-wise. Meanwhile, González’s Alice is whip smart and maybe the most clever person in this entire group. This story works because we buy their love story and the inherent good of these two, to the point that Nick would time-travel to save them, and both Marsden and González make this work quite nicely.

But the real standout here is Vaughn as Nick and Nick. While there may only be a six-month difference between these two Nicks, Vaughn makes them both feel distinct. It’s clear the loss of Mike has impacted Nick (again, to the point that when he was given the opportunity to travel back to any time, he chose to save his friend’s life), and Future Nick plays that perfectly. Vaughn plays Future Nick as more composed, reflective, and understanding of his limitations as a person, as well as what means the most to him. It’s a lovely performance by Vaughn that’s balanced by the more brash, quick-to-anger Present Nick, who has yet to realize the error of his ways. Watching Vaughn playing the same character, but with a half-year between them, is genuinely great, and almost feels like a step forward from his dual role in the 2020 horror comedy Freaky.

Huey Lewis talks into a megaphone in 'Back to the Future'

Grabinski also packs this cast with delightful cameos throughout that are always a joy. Schwartz is always a ball of energy in everything he does, and that’s particularly true as Symon. The film is also packed with goofy-named low-ranking gangsters like Dumbass Tony (Arturo Castro) and Roid Rage Ryan (Lewis Tan), who more than live up to their names. But especially great are Keith David and Jimmy Tatro, the father and son who are aiming for Mike’s death. Every line David drops is pure gold, whereas Tatro nails this sort of braggadocio scumbag. But from top to bottom, Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice have cast this film incredibly well.

Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice is a total blast, and frankly, it’s a shame this isn’t the type of film getting a theatrical release, because this is a genuine crowd-pleaser of the highest order. Grabinski has made a film that feels like a new action-comedy classic, one that blends all sorts of ideas and genres into an unbelievably fun movie. Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice is a ridiculous adventure that is constantly surprising, unexpectedly touching, and truly hilarious.

Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice comes to Hulu on March 27.

Release Date March 27, 2026

Runtime 107 Minutes

Director BenDavid Grabinski

Writers BenDavid Grabinski

Producers Andrew Lazar

Cast

Pros & Cons

Writer-director BenDavid Grabinski mixes genres perfectly to make an extremely fun gangster-thriller-time-travel comedy.
The cast, especially dual roles by Vince Vaughn, is a lot of fun.
This feels like the type of action-comedy that would've been a huge crowdpleaser just a few decades ago.