14 DAY TRIAL // Ryan Gosling can’t catch a break: his directorial debut, the much-hyped “Lost River,” which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, has been scrapped from theatrical release, with Warner Bros. deciding to release it straight on DVD in April.
When a studio has a film from one of the hottest actors of the moment, as Gosling is, and sits on it until almost the last moment before pulling it from its theatrical release schedule, that’s a clear sign that said studio has lost faith in the project.
Based on the reviews coming out of Cannes, it’s no wonder that this happened: the film sacrifices style for substance, and though visually impressive, comes across as a stunted attempt at storytelling. It’s dumb and slow, and a pain to sit through, critics have said.
Perhaps worst of it all, “Lost River” is a missed opportunity given Gosling’s talent and the cast involved. The film stars Christina Hendricks, Eva Mendes, Saoirse Ronan, Matt Smith, and Iain De Caestecker, and tells the story of a single mother whose son discovers “a secret road leading to an underwater town.”
“Lost River” is billed a fantasy thriller, and you will find a trailer for it embedded below. Gosling has worked closely with Nicolas Refn before and you can tell his influence on Gosling’s directorial style in this short video too. The problem is that his influence is noticeable throughout the entire movie, as per the critics.
