The Gray Man Goes Too Far with the Stoic-Spy Cliché
Ryan Gosling has long used stoicism as a powerful weapon in his films.
Drive, a taut 2011 thriller in which he played an anonymous stunt driver who is cool behind the wheel
But monosyllabic in conversation, is still one of his best-remembered movies.
He acted as Officer K in Blade Runner 2049 and was a literally emotionless robotic "replicant."
He portrays astronaut Neil Armstrong as aloof and prickly in the film First Man, much more prepared to tackle his work than any interpersonal relationship.
But despite how detached he appeared in each of those films,
he was constantly juggling a complex character, important narrative stakes, and a hint of interior weirdness.