Ryan Gosling is a Canadian actor whose most recent film, Project Hail Mary, exploded in the box office this past month. He’s been all over the place in his movies, playing astronauts, down-on-their-luck detectives, musicians, stunt drivers, a Ken doll, and many, many more. Here’s just a few of what we consider to be Gosling’s best.
Starting off strong with the newest movie, Project Hail Mary, which released for the first time in theaters on March 20th. Fans and critics alike loved this movie so much that its theatrical window was extended, and it has been showing for over a month. Gosling plays a middle-school science teacher who wakes up alone on a spaceship light-years away from Earth. He has no idea what he’s out there to do or what happened to his fellow crewmates. Along the way, he meets a very loveable alien and discovers more about his purpose in saving the universe. Overall, this was a beautifully produced movie, the visuals and music were stunning, and we would highly recommend seeing it before it leaves theaters.
Up next on our list of hits is Barbie. Starring Margot Robbie as the titular Barbie, Gosling plays one-of-many Kens. While living in the picture-perfect Barbie Land, Barbie begins having darker thoughts, feelings of impending doom and lowering self-worth. Barbie travels to the Real World to figure out what’s going on with her, and Ken tags along. While in the Real World, Ken discovers the joys and wonders of toxic masculinity and brings that back to Barbie Land. Barbie has to work with two human girls to stop Ken and restore the peacefulness of Barbie Land. We both went to see Robbie and Gosling absolutely kill it as plastic dolls on Barbie’s opening weekend. We believe that this movie is a staple of feminism and is a must-watch.
Another highly-awarded Gosling movie is La La Land. Gosling and Emma Stone star as Sebastian and Mia, respectively, exploring themes of love and achieving your dreams. Mia is an aspiring actress, and Sebastian is a jazz pianist. The two meet in an intense moment of road rage on the freeway. Afterwards, they keep having these chance encounters and eventually fall in love. They both take risks to achieve financial stability, putting their artistic freedoms second. Their schedules conflict and they have less time for each other, but their careers are ultimately successful. This movie is very bittersweet and best watched when you want to feel something. It has so many awards for a reason, we heartily recommend this film
A complete one-eighty from our last pick, The Fall Guy is an action-comedy following Gosling as the stuntman Colt Seavers. After suffering a debilitating accident on a film set, Seavers is called back to work on his director ex-girlfriend’s first big hit movie. When his actor counterpart goes missing, Seavers is pulled into goofy hijinks to find him. Uncovering a murder plot, getting framed for said murder, and simultaneously trying to win back your ex is a lot to juggle, but Seavers manages to pull through. This colorful cast of characters will keep you on the edge of your seat through the whole movie. With gripping action scenes and silly moments, we can’t recommend this underrated gem enough.
Ryan Gosling once said that he doesn’t like to play “perfect” characters. Looking through his filmography and the characters that he chooses to play, this statement rings true. Even in macho-tough-guy roles, like a private detective accompanied by a hitman, he manages to make the characters feel real and grounded. Every Gosling movie is a hit. Watch out for his next film, Star Wars: Starfighter!
