Ryan Gosling: Movie Star?

The Ides of March

I've watched two movies, The Ides of March and Drive, in less than a week and instead of reviewing them separately, I'm going to blog about the star of both films, Ryan Gosling.  I'm struck by how much of the movies is dominated by Gosling's performance.  In both cases, it holds the films together.  Gosling's character in The Ides of March, Stephen Meyers, is a wide-eyed idealist who believes in the work he does to make sure his candidate gets elected into office.  The other characters in the film, especially Paul Giamatti's Duffy and Marisa Tomei's reporter Ida, exploit him for their own means.  Yet however in the end, Stephen learns a cold hard truth how what it takes to survive in the political world.  I love the scene of him finally confronting George Clooney's Mike Morris about his indiscretions.  Both of them are assuming something about each other but in that one instant you can see in his eyes when Stephen crosses over the line, there's no going back after this.  In a movie featuring George Clooney, who probably has his picture next to the dictionary definition of movie star, Ryan Gosling manages to captivate the audience with his rendition of up-and-coming campaign manager.  A truly leading man performance.

Drive

On the other end of the spectrum, Gosling also starred in Drive, a movie so exhilarating and thrilling that kept us on the edge of our seats wondering what was going to happen next.  Gosling's character "the Kid" or the "Driver" is a man of a few words instead letting his actions speak for him.  When he does speak though, he is clear on what he means.  With an pulsating retro soundtrack, the story takes us from the Driver's solitary existence of him and his cars to being involved with his neighbor, Irene (Carey Mulligan), and her son.  He becomes emotionally entangled and it's hard for him to walk away when their lives are placed in danger when Irene's husband returns home from prison.  What follows is a chain of events set up so that no one character is safe, no one can be trusted.  But we do know this, we trust the Driver.  The director, Nicholas Winding Refn, and Gosling are to make another film together and hopefully it'll be another thrill ride like Drive.  Lastly, we have to discuss the Driver's "driving attire", the gloves and the golden scorpion jacket.  Not everyone can pull that off but it works well on Gosling.

Crazy, Stupid, Love

But wait, there's more!  The Ides of March and Drive weren't Gosling's only films of the year.  He also had a surprise summer hit in Crazy, Stupid, Love where he plays a ladies man who helps Steve Carell's character turn his life around after his divorce.  The film was hilarious and for once, it was nice to see Ryan not play a heavy loaded character whose backstory could fill a whole book.  I wish occasionally the serious actors like Leonardo DiCaprio or Daniel Craig would try their hands at a comedy or a lighter role once in a while.  Of course, Gosling played his role as seriously as he would any other role which makes it all the more better and funnier.

But despite all his success in 2011, Ryan Gosling couldn't garner an Oscar nomination for either of his movies.  As I mentioned in my Oscar nominations' reaction post, he is still young and he was previously nominated before for Half Nelson and I'm pretty certain he's going to get the opportunity again to win.  Until then, we can just appreciate the earnestness of his recent performances.

Lars and the Real Girl

P.S.- If you have time, consider renting Lars and the Real Girl, my favorite of Ryan Gosling's performances.  Extremely endearing and touching!  

The Best and Worst of 2011

I thought I'd do things a bit differently this time.  I feel I haven't seen enough of the best of the year as they haven't released in this part of the world yet so I don't feel like making a half-heartened attempt at a top ten list.  Instead, I'm just going to randomly name films that I truly felt moved me, made me laugh and made me think.  Without further adieu...

THE BEST:

Heartbreaker (L'amacoeur): While this film released in France in 2010, it got more worldwide release in 2011.  It's your typical French romantic comedy with Vanessa Paradis and Romain Duris as a con man who tries to derail heiress Paradis' upcoming nuptials.  Oh, there is a big Dirty Dancing theme throughout the film.  As the French say, this one was tres charmante.

Rango: What does it say that the best Western this year was an animated one?  Gore Verbinski's take on the Western and its inhabitants was mighty entertaining.  As the titular character Rango, it looked like Johnny Depp was having a lot of fun and his interactions with the rest of the cast was priceless.  Also, I would request that the recordings of the voice talents should be made into a separate film, I would totally watch that.

Source Code: The second film from Duncan Jones (Moon) did not disappoint.  A sci-fi take on Groundhog Day that I wouldn't mind watching again and again.  And, ooh look, it has Jake Gyllenhaal in it.  Sold!

The Adjustment Bureau: This was one of the surprise hits of the earlier part of the year which I enjoyed thoroughly.  The chemistry between Matt Damon and Emily Blunt took us through the journey and I loved the universe the film was set in, it creates such possibilities.

Midnight in Paris: Woody Allen continues to surprise.  While I didn't care much for his last feature, this one I absolutely loved.  Set in Paris, the movie takes us on a wonderful journey that I wouldn't mind taking myself.  Owen Wilson plays a struggling novelist who stumbles back in time to 1920s Paris and meets his literary legends in Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald.  Not only that, he stumbles across a time that he imagines is the perfect era to live in and to be amongst the contemporaries in the fields of art, music and the written word.  Anyone would envy such a choice and this film will turn out to be one of Allen's best so far, a glorious love letter to Paris.  While Woody Allen is known for his New York films, his European excursion is proving to be quite the delight.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2: This one was bittersweet.  The last in the world of Harry Potter but it was such a satisfyingly well-done series with characters and worlds we have grown to love over the last decade.  We will definitely miss the countdowns and anticipation of the next films as there are no more Harry Potters to look forward too.  Thank you for a decade of friendship, courage and great movies.

Bridesmaids: The funniest film on female friendships you will see this year.  And we don't see many of them, it's mostly always about male bonding.  Kirsten Wiig and Melissa McCarthy gave fearless performance in a laugh-out loud film about weddings and craziness that goes behind the scenes.

Jane Eyre:  The best and perhaps only period film out there this past year.  Cary Fukunaga's adaptation of Bronte's work was a different, somber take on the subject.  Great casting with Mia Wasikowska as Jane and Michael Fassbender as Rochester.  Bonus for Judi Dench as Mrs. Fairfax.  She makes every film she's in better.

X-Men: First Class: Speaking of Michael Fassbender, because of his and James McAvoy's performances as Magneto and Professor Xavier, this superhero movie was even more interesting.  I only wish they had spent more time on their friendship turned conflicts.

Crazy Stupid Love: Ryan Gosling should act in more comedies.  This was a hilarious all star cast of gigantic misunderstandings and Steve Carell and Gosling made the best odd couple of the past year.  One of the better romantic comedies made in a long while.

The Adventures of Tintin:  The intrepid boy reporter is back but this time the tale is told through the joint effort of Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson.  Not bad, eh?  The real star of the film though is Snowny who is the real right hand of Tintin.  However, this film is only for real fans for the comics, for not everyone "gets" Tintin.

Attack the Block: This film was a real surprise, wasn't expecting to get caught up in the story.  A group of teenagers get caught up in a war of us against them.  Them being the aliens.  A highly entertaining film and for once I was pleased to see an alien film not always located in USA but this time in the tough  neighborhood of London.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes: One of the best films of the past year in every aspect, maybe it may not be on most critics' list but as a moviegoer and fan, I was glued to my seat throughout it.  They've already announced the sequels following the success of the film and its use of motion capture.  Viva la Ape Revolution!

The Help: Now here is a film that can be found on most critics' lists and with good reason.  Based on the novel by the same name, The Help was a deeply moving film dealing with race relations in the South in the 1960s.  Told mainly from the point of view of the maids that worked in the white households, the film showcases the acting talents of Viola Davis as Abileen, Octavia Spencer as Minny, Jessica Chastain as Celia, Emma Stone as Skeeter and Bryce Dallas Howard as Hilly.  Filled with many touching moments, this one should be on your must watch list.

Kung Fu Panda 2: In a year where sequels dominated, so did Po the Panda.  I'm glad that the second time around was just as fun.  With a female director, Jennifer Yu Nelson, at the helm, a rarity in animation, the film dealt with question of Po's parents.  The emotional stuff was very well done and I think and hope the story will be continued into the next film as well.  The goofy yet brave panda has truly won over our hearts.

Limitless: Bradley Cooper completely owned this role about a struggling novelist (are there any other?) who pops a wonder pill that allows him to use his brain to its full potential.  The results are, to say the least, incredibly mind-blowing.  Who wouldn't want to be the person that they were actually meant to be?

Super 8: JJ Abrams and Steven Spielberg got together to produce a film that was an ode to 1980s.  A very impressive young cast who are fully committed to making movies stumble across something much bigger than their film that completely changes all their lives.  Look past the monster flick to the story of little town and its people.

Special Mention: 

Delhi Belly: This Hinglish movie was all kinds of crazy.  Crazy in plot, crazy in the situations the characters found themselves in and yet I couldn't help laughing along.  In fact, I couldn't remember the last time I had such a good time laughing with the rest of the audience in the theater.  We were all horrified and entertained at the same time.

Incendies: The best foreign film I saw this year.  A mother leaves behind a note for her twin children, a young girl and boy, informing them to find their presumed dead father and brother.  Their quest to find their lost relations takes them to the cold hard truth that had been buried for decades.  The ending still haunts me to this day.  What a film!

Honourable Mentions: 

Horrible Bosses: The comedic trio of Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis and Charlie Day combined to bring us a very funny tale of three ordinary workers trying to snuff their evil bosses.

Columbiana: Zoe Saldana was mighty impressive as a ruthless assassin who plans a slow and simmering revenge against her parents' killers

Beginners: Ewan McGregor and Christopher Plummer give award worthy performances as a son and father dealing with their relationship after a life-changing reveal.  Special kudos to the little dog who plays Arthur.  He will steal your heart.

Moneyball: Brad Pitt is the movie; he plays the GM of the Oakland A's who employs a radical new approach to scouting in baseball.  Could this actually change the game?  Watch and find out.  Jonah Hill also impresses in a very serious role as an economics graduate who helps Pitt's character run the numbers.

The Lincoln Lawyer: Matthew McConaughey plays a lawyer who will defend anyone for money but what happens when he suspects that his defendant is actually guilty?  Oh, and his office is his car; therefore the title.

The Guard: Now I get why Brendan Gleeson was nominated for Golden Globe as a racist, immoral Irish cop who might just be the smartest detective in Ireland.  Don Cheadle also stars as an FBI agent.

WORST:

Red Riding Hood: Here's a fairy tale retelling that didn't work. At all.  Produced by Leonardo DiCaprio and directed by Catherine Hardwicke (Twilight), it seemed poised for another gothic retelling.  I felt this one had such potential but it became like the pale cousin of the Twilight series.

Gulliver's Travels: Another disappointment.  Jack Black as the boorish "Gulliver" in the land of the Lilliputians should have drawn huge laughs but no smiles were to be had.  All the best moments were already revealed in the trailer.

Cowboys & Aliens: Joss Whedon tackled this sci-fi meets the Western much much better in long departed yet much missed TV show Firefly.  The movie cast Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) vs. James Bond (Daniel Craig) yet the movie didn't give them much to do except look surly. A truly missed opportunity.

Love Wedding Marriage: I don't why I watched this movie only maybe so I could complain about it later.  The worst movie of the year!  I hated all the characters and whiny problems.

Just Go With It: Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston were making this movie on auto-pilot, it seemed.  Such a yawnfest and highly unbelievable.

Little Fockers:  There was absolutely no point in this movie anymore.  It's been done to death with the previous two movies.  It's just prolonging the one-note joke.  No more, please!

Movie Review: Crazy, Stupid, Love

What is the reason why we watch rom-coms? Over the years, there is a certain pattern of predictability to them that we've come to expect. Same reason why I may chose to watch a movie like Notting Hill a weekend when you've got nothing to do is because they are like comfort food.

But once in awhile there comes a movie that throws all the rules out and presents you with something quite original.  Crazy, Stupid, Love is that movie.  I can't remember when I had such a good time in the theater (read: laughed out loud at actual jokes). This a movie that you have to watch with an audience because the audience reactions to what goes onscreen are just as entertaining.


Crazy, Stupid, Love is about the dissolution of a marriage, not something you'd expect in a rom-com but it works here.  Julianne Moore's character Emily opens the film by asking for a divorce and the film moves ahead to show us how they both handle the separation.  Steve Carrell's character Cal is a bit of sad sack at the beginning, who's completely thrown for a loop by this announcement and suddenly takes to hanging out a trendy bar where he clearly is out of place.  Jacob (Ryan Gosling) notices him and decides to take him under his wing to make be a man again. Here comes the fun part of the movie, the sequences of Carell's makeover are very well-done comically.  He then emerges a new man and tries to win back his ex-wife.  It doesn't go very well, bad for him and funny fodder for us. And, oh yeah, Jacob also meets his match in Hannah (Emma Stone).

There are other sub-plots running through the film that tie itself very neatly to the ending. I don't want to reveal anything here, it will ruin your viewing pleasure.  Though I must say, it was quite impressive, I never saw it coming.  I was so engrossed in the film. The movie has effortless performances by its starcast in particular Carell and Gosling. You'd never think them to be a team together, but it totally works here. Gosling is usually such a serious actor otherwise, one would never think to find him in a movie like this. But he really commits to his role. I really enjoyed this film and I'd say if you're only going watch one rom-com this year, watch this one!

PS-My funniest scene of the film, the girls in the audience actually gasped out loud at this. Ryan Reynolds, you have officially been dethroned for best movie abs by Ryan Gosling! Sorry, but look at them.  



Directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Recqua; Written by Dan Fogelman; Cinematography by Andrew Dunn; Edited by Lee Haxall; Music by Christophe Beck and Nick Urata

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