1. Dean - Blue Valentine
The beautiful film that served as my introduction to Gosling was Derek Cianfrance's debut, Blue Valentine, the epic love story that shows the lovely beginning and emotional and destructive ending of a relationship. It is a film that the viewer truly gets invested in, and a lot of that is owed to the wonderful chemistry between Gosling and Michelle Williams, who deserved ever accolade heaped on her. What's baffling to me, and it isn't even too relevant, is the fact that Gosling got barely any awards love for his tour de force, career highlight of a performance. His Dean is one of the most charming, interesting characters in recent years, and it is undoubtedly the best thing Gosling has done so far in his career. At times he is incandescent in his energy and spirit, blossoming as a creative but volatile influence at the outset of the central relationship, while later he is the archetypal caged animal, burning with simultaneous desire and rage at his lost dream. In truth, the film offers two performances by both Gosling and Williams, which should bring even more credit for both actors. Gosling's yin-yang Dean is a stunning and provocative portrait of a man slipping down a hillside, unable to grasp on to the things he loves, and unwilling to accept the inevitable. The alinear narrative structure helps to explicate this duality of the character as well, and though Williams won more accolades, the film is undoubtedly Dean's story - or more appropriately, his tragedy. Click "next" below to read the five performances that sucked...