Cross-genre picks: Ryan Gosling names his four favourite movies
Ryan Gosling refuses to be constrained by genre. Since finding fame with his role as the leading man in the beloved romance The Notebook, he has resisted typecasting entirely, finding his way into big-budget science-fiction, off-kilter comedies, and, most recently, into the hearts of millions with his rendition of ‘I’m Just Ken’.
The Nice Guys saw him deliver one of the most criminally underrated comedic performances in modern memory, while Blue Valentine provided a new, realistic take on the romance genre and is even a favourite of Paul Mescal’s. Between Lars and the Real Girl and La La Land, Gosling’s cross-genre filmography has found fans in self-proclaimed cinephiles and casual cinema-goers alike.
While Gosling’s films begin to pervade favourites lists on Letterboxd, he divulged his own picks during an interview with the social media platform. His choices continued to prove his cross-genre interests in film, as he kicked things off with 1985’s No Retreat, No Surrender, remembering how he adored the film in his youth.
“I liked No Retreat, No Surrender when I was a kid a lot because Bruce Lee would appear to this kid in his mirror and teach him how to fight,” he remembered, “I love Bruce Lee, and I wanted that to be my life.” The film introduced Gosling to his love for the medium, as it showed him that “anything’s possible” in cinema.
No Retreat, No Surrender wasn’t the only sports-themed film to make Gosling’s list. He also named the iconic 1976 film Rocky, starring Sylvester Stallone. While Gosling is clearly passionate about the genre, it is one area that he has rarely ventured into in his own career. So far, he has only briefly dabbled in on-screen sports in 2002’s The Slaughter Rule.
The other half of Gosling’s picks came from a genre he’s slightly more familiar with — science-fiction. Under Denis Villeneuve’s masterful direction, the Canadian starred in the stunning sequel to Blade Runner, so it’s no surprise that he admires the genre’s classics. He picked out the iconic Back to the Future and Ron Howard’s Cocoon as some of his favourites.
The former is one of the most well-loved entries into the genre of all time, a tale of time travel that made DeLoreans and deep sea dances iconic. Released in the same year, Cocoon ventured further into extra-terrestrial endeavours, while still retaining heart and humanity at its centre.
Spanning sci-fi and sports, Gosling’s favourite films show his wide-ranging interest in on-screen storytelling. Though he’s set to try his hand at action once more with his upcoming film The Fall Guy, it would be interesting to see him take on another sci-fi dystopia, or to see him take on a fighting film in the image of Bruce Lee.
Since learning about the never-ending possibilities of cinema from Lee in his childhood, Gosling has gone on to revel in that freedom. His work spans countless genres and, as a result, has won over countless cinema-goers.
Ryan Gosling’s favourite movies:
- No Retreat, No Surrender
- Rocky
- Back to the Future
- Cocoon
