On Ryan Gosling (with particular attention to Project Hail Mary)
Spoilers for Project Hail Mary
I’m tired of reviewing film. It’s important to grade film on a scale, and it feels not only necessary in our capitalist world where money is tight and time thin, but also helpful for us to articulate craft. What makes a movie great? Having a personal answer empowers us. I am, however, done, I think, with doing reviewing in any traditional kind of way. Project Hail Mary is a good example of why. I could tell you whether I think Lord & Miller’s new one is well done or not, but I don’t know if my saying it is the most productive act I can do with regards to the film. I think I’d rather just talk about Ryan Gosling. (I originally wrote a bit about Hüller, too, who many will argue is the quiet MVP of this picture, but her performance just needs to be seen. I don’t want to describe it in words, so I won’t.)
Gosling’s filmography, the scope of his career and its eccentricity, has always been my favorite, and one I would want to aspire to if I was an actor myself. Sure, he’s a handsome and effective leading man, but isn’t it the peculiarity of him–his neon-lit working-relationship with Nicolas Winding Refn, his comedy chops, and whatever is going on in his interviews–that makes him star-status-worthy? I got into his work big time around 2016 when I finished undergrad and started my MFA, right before La La Land released. I watched nearly everything I could get my hands on of him, less for him and more for how he always manages to land in something interesting. Gosling has felt like a not-quite-parasocial old friend, one who has never been the bestie, but one I’ve always liked. But I’ve never enjoyed him quite as much as I did in Project Hail Mary, even if he’s been “better” (who cares) elsewhere. He’s kind of performing himself, or, rather, performing an extension of his amplified celebrity persona--the down-to-earth and seemingly-harmless goof hiding a hard-work resiliency. We want this Ryland guy to survive, or at least to have a very satisfying arc-conclusion, because he's trying to be earnest even if it doesn't come so naturally.
Project Hail Mary yields moments throughout this for Gosling to extend beyond his dry resting facial expression and into a really golden emotional terrain. I think (I’m reviewing now) the film could and should have made more room for this, as Dr. Grace’s vulnerability with not only Rocky but himself is the engine and the oil driving the film. Can’t get over Gosling’s read when Grace realizes Rocky is going to sacrifice years for his friend to get home. Yea, this movie gets saccharine, but I’d argue Gosling navigates it as well as any actor working today could.
There’s an alternate universe where Chris Pratt got this. I actually don’t think his performance would have been terrible–just a too-straightforward comedic read. Maybe actually more starry-eyed earnest than Gosling’s, as the latter is playing it cool when he needs to. Pratt’s take would lack Gosling’s luminous breakdowns, the cracks with the gold, etc. Gosling will never fully shake a saturating irony some may find off-putting. At times, for me, it is, too. But that’s OK. He doesn’t have to be a sterling magnet at all times. That tension is of course good in an actor.
Anyway, I was a little wary of a big Oscar-nominated star like him taking the lead in a Star Wars film, but I’ve gone real quiet on that. It’s not an exact match, but sarcastic man in space with big emotional eyes and a turn toward heroism is a pretty good fit for the SW tone, so Project Hail Mary is at least a passed acid test for Gosling’s potential in Starfighter. I’ll hold off on my half-heated judgments! I will take my dollar and go see a Star War.
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