Why Ryan Gosling Needs To Embrace His Destiny As A Romantic Hero

Today is Ryan Gosling‘s 34th birthday. While I would like to wish him hearty congratulations on his special day, and want to extend love to his girlfriend, Eva Mendes, and their newborn daughter, I also have a bone to pick with him. Ryan Gosling is the greatest romantic hero of the 21st Century, but rather than embrace it, he seems hellbent on staying as far away from romantic roles as possible.

I can understand the reasons why Ryan Gosling might thumb his nose at romantic comedies—distancing himself from all those pesky “Hey girl” memes is probably something his management team has advised him on—but he’s going further than that. For the past few years, he has purposely steered away from love stories. From both a critical and a commercial point of view, this has been quite the mistake.

Ryan Gosling’s cachet has never been being a tough guy, an artsy guy, or even an everyman. His allure is his romanticism. Yes, he burst on the scene with stellar performances in gritty independent films like Half Nelson or The Believer, but he didn’t really pop until he unlocked his inner romantic in The Notebook.

Now, The Notebook is kind of a silly story if you break it down. It’s just your typical “boy-meets-girl, boy-loses-girl, girl’s-mom-hides-boy’s-letters, boy-builds-house-to-woo-girl-away-from-James-Marsden, boy-tells-girl-their-story-everyday-to-help-combat-her-Alzheimer’s” story. People don’t love The Notebook because they love romances involving assisted care facilities; they love it because of Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams’ incendiary chemistry.

“If you’re a bird, then I’m a bird” might be one of the stupidest lines ever written, but it soars because Ryan Gosling delivers it with such candid sweetness that it melts your heart. There are very few men in Hollywood who have this ability to be so sweet without seeming treacly. In fact, Ryan Gosling might be the only one.

In fact, Gosling is always at his best when he’s exposing the ecstasy and despair of falling in love.  Consider his performances in Lars and the Real Girl or Blue Valentine. In both of those films, Gosling plays everyday guys, but what makes their stories compelling is how they express, process, and are in turn, both bettered and wounded by love.

Gosling directly confronted and played with this aspect of his image to wonderful and hilarious effect in Crazy, Stupid, Love. Yeah, he took his shirt off. Sure, he romanced Emma Stone. However, what really made him so great he portrayed a guy trapped in the role of seducer. For most of the film, you think his character is only consumed with hitting on women and playing the game. It isn’t until a drunk Hannah, played by Emma Stone, turns the tables and deconstructs his technique that the character’s true charm and heart begins to emerge.

Even when he’s playing a tough guy, like in Drive, his characters’ most compelling moments are born out of romance. Drive might start with a stellar car chase, but the film is — and excuse the pun — driven by the Driver’s love for Irene. Through body language and meaningful glances, Gosling convinces us that the Driver’s love for this married woman is worth ruining his entire life. Similarly, Gosling’s character in The Place Beyond The Pines might be a bank robber, but he is compelled to break the law in an attempt to provide for his ex-girlfriend and infant son.

However, in the midst of all these great romantic roles, Gosling has tried his hand at political drama (The Ides of March), super violent action thrillers (Gangster Squad and Only God Forgives), and directing his own film (Lost River). But as he moves away from romance, Gosling is moving away from where both critics and commercial audiences want to see him. The aforementioned films have not performed well, and it’s unclear when, if ever, Gosling will return to any sort of love story. That is a shame.

Ryan Gosling should not continue to play a romantic hero because “he’s hot,” but because he has a unique sensitivity as an actor that no one else has.

Come on, Ryan, all we want to do is fall in love with you. Is that so bad?

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[Photo: Everett Collection]