'Only God Forgives': Ryan Gosling Not in a Romantic Comedy Anymore

I love the Fast and Furious series maybe more than I should. The over the top destruction and one liners all in the name of family and loyalty make the Paul Walker/ Vin Diesel series as entertaining as anything else made the last ten years. But everyone knows the Fast universe is pretty different from the one we live in. At least I hope so after I see the Rock's character Federal Agent Hobbs interrogate a suspect by throwing him against the ceiling and ground and dismiss a peer's question by throwing their files to the floor stating "here's what makes sense!"

But sometimes it's nice to have an action film with a hint of realism and artsiness and Ryan Gosling has made these better than anyone us else lately. His last film Place Beyond the Pines told the story of a stunt motorcycle driver and how his attempts to care for his son effects all those around him. The serious drama is not without numerous chases and vengeful acts of violence.

In his new film Only God Forgives, which comes out Friday in America, Gosling plays a Bangkok underworld figure who does Muay Thai and has a mother that's compared to Lady Macbeth. Nicolas Winding Refn, known for Gosling's Drive, wrote and directed the film. 

The enthralling trailer suggests Gosling's character will have the same minimalist feel as his Drive character. His only words in the minute and 40-second Red Band trailer are "want to fight?" As he did with his Drive character, Gosling looks able to convey strong emotions and drives without a lot of facial contortions or long dialogues. DiCaprio gets De Niro comparisons because of his work with Scorsese but perhaps Gosling's ability to demonstrate the rage of a lonely man with subtlety should garner him the comparisons. 

Let's all celebrate that the young actor who could have been content picking romantic films like The Notebook continues to choose such interesting, and challenging films to work on.