The Golden Gosling | Ryan Gosling
an emily blunt interview

Ryan Gosling continually makes me smile. He's that rare kinda actor that springs upon the scene not worried about his image but using the craft for his own entertainment. That is to say, he seems to relish in the whole Sean Penn-Johnny Depp-Benicio Del Toro style of transforming till he's almost unrecognizable.

I say almost, because from within the latest character he shrouds himself in, you can still see his handsome features sparkling through; peeking out from all the talent he's sauteed in…

Trust me! This is one Cuteyschnitzlesaurus Rex folks! Enough rambling, let's get to Ryan:

EMILY: What's the difference, for you, between playing a more internal character like Leland and more an outwardly evil guy like in Murder By Numbers?

RYAN: He was just misunderstood. [laughter]

EMILY: Which one?

RYAN: All of them [laughter] Um, yeah well it's very defined. I wanted to do it so badly because I felt like Leland was so different from the one you were talking about. It's this kind of character that's not in movies very often- characters that are emotionally disconnected for the whole film - so it's a tricky thing to tap in to. I felt he was kind of interesting. It felt realistic.

EMILY: How do you create an emotion arc for the character that's emotionally detached? So evenly detached throughout a film?

RYAN: Yeah. It's like when you watch a movie, and it's not happening to you but you can still get invested in it? Feel emotional about it? You're right there with them? It felt like that's what Leland was doing - but the movie was his life. You couldn't see him in the theater watching him doing that- but he was "in there" somewhere doing that. It was important that he not tries and communicate that to the audience 'cause that didn't feel very natural you know. He was cut off.

EMILY: Is that how you came up with the idiosyncrasy of Leland's bottom lip? He was suddenly so childlike-innocent-ish.

RYAN: All of those things came from different places. It was real kind of a windy road to get to where we got to eventually. All of…basically you read thing, the script was so good - I thought, powerful. There's a definite spirit there on the character - but you have to put a body on it. You have to give that body taste and clothes and the way he likes to -how he holds himself. That person has to have a style. All of those things come out at that time. They fall into place. I think actors do that…it's our job.

EMILY: Do you have a mentor?

RYAN: Well I way say Henry bean, the writer of The Believer. He's kind of gift-wrapped me a career. It's the kind of movie that anyone could have done and it would have been what it is so the opportunity to do a film like that has given me the opportunity to do the kind of films I do now.

EMILY: How difficult has it been to find complex roles?

RYAN: It's very very difficult. It's nice to have an opportunity to actually do them. Sometimes you have to do movies you…you're maybe not crazy about the movie but you're like there's something in that character you need to learn from as an actor, to play to -it's tricky and I guess you have to approach it that way as an actor. You'll never progress. You'd need to be a filmmaker to think that way. For me I just take the character and be as honest as I can with that character -what ever the movie is it is -I can't control it.

EMILY: Is it weird your personal life is now news-I mean like the whole the
Sandra Bullock stuff that sprung up?

RYAN: Um, my personal life is just that, personal. It feels very bizarre-but I certainly haven't experienced it. The bottom line is we'll finish this interview and I'll go get coffee and nobody will bat an eye - I'm very fortunate in that respect right now. It helps me to do my job. The more you know about somebody…I think people ruin it for themselves you know? The audiences who want to know so much about actors they end up ruining that actor's future movie'cause they know too much about them.

EMILY: I agree. I heard about Gabrielle Byrne beating his ex and that was it - of course I didn't like him before but now?? Do you have a goal?

RYAN: To be a star! [laughter] No. Look I've been very fortunate so far. I've been able to do the movies I want and I get to have a personal life. I have an ideal situation at the moment. My goal is to make a couple more movies…maintain this kind of pace and not let movies become the most important part of my life.

EMILY: What are your personal goals? [Thought but not spoken: Dating a blunt blonde perhaps]

RYAN: [laughter - with an odd subconscious understanding of what I'd thought- I think] Those things are personal…but I'll make those things my life and like you have a life.

EMILY: You like your performance or beat yourself up like the rest?

RYAN: You know. You cannot be objective about your own work-it's impossible to like it. To watch it. But, at the same time you learn from it and it's kind of addicting. You keep looking for the next role where you're just going to disappear. [ he makes a "poof" Keysor Soze-ish hand gesture] Gone. It's a scary process.

EMILY: What is your process?

RYAN: I find the more work I do the more complicated it gets. I didn't train as an actor I started to …each role is like a different suit or something; you have to cut it up, sew it make it fit you. You know?

EMILY: You feel training might interrupts the intuitive process?

RYAN: I think you have to be smart about what's working for you and what's not. I think a lot of these people who go to school get duped teachers really tear them down so they're self-conscience and insecure so they have a lot of pain to draw from which I think is kind of a back asswards way of doing it-it's like dancing you either have rhythm or you don't. I mean you can "learn" to dance but either you have rhythm or you don't. Acting's the same way. You have this thing or you don't-you can't learn that. But it is a craft. And it's a job. You can learn how to do your job more efficiently.

EMILY: Yeah, I agree. So, is there a level you'd like to get to?

RYAN: I don't want the pressure. I don't want the pressure of having to make any money back. You know what I mean? It drives me nuts! The bigger budget things I stay away from 'cause them ii don't have to worry about making money back. I'd like to be able to male small movies about whatever theme is moving me at the time…I'd like to have enough of an audience that we can just keep making those. We can keep satisfying each other. That would be the ideal.
END

Bluntly speaking? Ryan's got a great gift - and like he said [paraphrased], you can either dance or you can't. Well, this palooka can dance...like Astaire and Kelly dance! Find The United States of Leland and watch his talent cover the screen. This summer he's in The Notebook. Or rent/buy The Believer it's another great. Murder by Numbers? I didn't hate it - I know that's not hip and going with the "pack"...but I thought it was kinda good.

Meanwhile, someone seems to have slipped into my dreams...because - get this - the lad is signed to a film by Benicio Del Toro, called Che. This highly anticipated projectin-the-perpetual-works and visual manfest also has my zenith of manly desires, Javier Bardem, gorgeous Del Toro, the slurpable Benjamin Bratt as well as a handfull of other mega talents for your viewing pleasure - but we wont see it till 2005/2006. Boo hoo who.