Year: 2024

Jamal Murray and the Denver Nuggets did not have an especially good time during the first half of Game 2 against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Already facing a 0-1 hole in their Western Conference Semifinal series, Denver got completely ran off of their home floor in the first half by the Rudy Gobert-less Wolves, as Minnesota took a shocking, 61-35 lead into the locker room at halftime.

The Wolves’ defense was ferocious, while the referees were letting a lot of contact go. That’s not a recipe that works in Denver’s favor, because when Minnesota can envelop opposing teams, you get to see why they had the No. 1 defense in the NBA. And no one was more frustrated with this than Jamal Murray, who usually wears his emotions on his sleeve but was especially frustrated with how things were going. In fact, while sitting on the bench during the second quarter, the cameras caught something getting thrown onto the floor from the Nuggets’ bench area.

After further examination, it appeared that Murray — presumably because he was unhappy that Karl-Anthony Towns did not get called for a travel — took a heat pack and threw it onto the floor.

It stands to reason that Murray wasn’t actively trying to throw it, but rather, it was in his hand and it just slipped out while he was expressing his discontent towards the referees. Still, it’s not a stretch to say that he’s fortunate that the refs took this as an accident and not something malicious, because it’s not hard to imagine a scenario where he would’ve gotten kicked out for this.

The New York Knicks drew first blood in the latest chapter of their lengthy playoff rivalry with the Indiana Pacers. Thanks to a big fourth quarter by Jalen Brunson, the Knicks were able to defend their homecourt in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals en route to a 121-117 win.

The first half essentially came down to the Pacers doing all the stuff that they do better than the Knicks. While Brunson (18 points) and Josh Hart (11 points, seven rebounds, two assists, two steals, and a block) had their fingerprints all over the game, the Pacers took a 55-49 lead into the locker room that would have been even larger if not for Isaiah Hartenstein hitting a shot from halfcourt right before the break.

This was because the Pacers did everything they wanted to over the opening 24 minutes. While Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam only combined for 12 points — their leading scorer, T.J. McConnell, had 10 off the bench — the team had 15 assists on 23 made baskets and hit seven of their 16 attempts from three. Plus Indiana managed to keep New York’s size from imposing itself on the glass, as the Knicks only had two offensive rebounds.

The third quarter went back-and-forth for long stretches. After the Knicks tied things up with 8:18 to go on the heels of an 8-2 burst, the two teams generally kept things close — even as there was a 10-0 Pacers run, New York came back with a response. And after things closed with a flurry, including Obi Toppin breaking out a between-the-legs dunk in his old stomping grounds, Indiana had an 87-82 lead it took into the fourth.

The start of the final quarter featured the Knicks slowly chipping away at the Pacers lead. While Indiana was able to get its lead up to nine points, New York ripped off a 10-2 run to get within striking distance before Aaron Nesmith baptized Mitchell Robinson with one of the filthiest dunks you’ll ever see.

New York kept fighting, although every time they had a chance to tie things up or take the lead, they were just unable to make the final bucket to get them to where they wanted to go. Things finally got tied up at the free throw line, and with just over three minutes left, a steal by OG Anunoby turned into a dunk on the other end to cap off a 7-0 run that finally gave them the lead.

With 94 seconds left, Andrew Nembhard got into the paint and scored a layup to give the lead back to Indiana, but Brunson came right back down the floor and got a bucket to tie things back up at 115. And after a Nembhard miss on the next possession, a potential mistake by the referees — they called a kicked ball on Nesmith that very well might have came off his hand — beget a Donte DiVincenzo three that ignited the Garden and put the Knicks ahead with 40 seconds left.

Siakam came back down and got a layup, and in a bit of bad luck for New York, Brunson got trapped on the sideline on their next possession, tried to chuck the ball off of Haliburton, and had it ricochet and come back off of him. But next time down, DiVincenzo embellished a pick where Myles Turner moved a little and got a foul called on the Pacers’ big man. And eventually, Brunson was able to ice things at the free throw line to give New York the win.

Brunson had 43 points on the night, with 19 of them coming in the fourth quarter. Both of his ex-Villanova teammates were magnificent, with DiVincenzo going for 25 points and Hart putting up 24 points, 13 rebounds, eight assists, two steals, and a block. For Indiana, six players scored in double-figures, led by 23 from Turner. But the most noteworthy performance came from Haliburton, as the All-Star only had six points on 2-for-6 shooting with eight assists, four steals, and two rebounds.

Game 2 between the Knicks and the Pacers will take place on Wednesday night at 8 p.m. EST on TNT.

The term “gentle parenting” popped onto the scene in the past few years. Many people still view it as a new style of parenting, but it’s been around for a long time—there just didn’t used to be a pop culture name attached to it. Gentle parenting is generally when a parent considers how to speak and interact with their children, with the emphasis on them being a full person who is learning to navigate the world.

Parents who use this method attempt to hear their children out, offering options and not using harsh tones or language, focusing on age-appropriate development in their approach. Some people view this style of parenting as permissive and can’t imagine how a child will develop into a functioning member of society without punishments and rewards for behaviors.

One woman has the answer to that question, taking it to social media so others can see. Noor Elanss created a video sharing that she was gentle parented as a child, and some of her revelations may surprise a few people.

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The woman starts the video explaining, “I’m an immigrant child who was gentle parented and as an adult, I’m vibing. I’m so happy to be alive. If there’s one thing that I think really distinguished my parents is that they were kind. They were so kind to me.”

Noor credits her parents’ gentle parenting style with her confidence today, “Never once have I walked into a room thinking, ‘do I deserve to be here’ cause growing up my parents always told me how proud they were of me and that I could accomplish anything that I wanted to.”

She goes on to list other examples of how she was parented showing up in her daily life, but one of the biggest takeaways from her video has to do with her self talk. Noor says that because her parents were so kind to her while shaping her inner voice that she speaks to herself kindly. Commenters were taken aback by the video writing messages of hope as well as disbelief.

@noor.elanss

so blessed to have learned kindness at a young age 💕

♬ original sound – Noor El ✨

“This is refreshing to see. I see a lot of people’s take on gentle parenting and they assume their children will grow up entitled. I gentle parent,” one person writes.

“Is this a skit??” I’ve never heard someone actually say this before. This is all I wish for my daughter and children in the future Mashalla [God has willed it],” another says.

“Like I technically knew this existed…but I still cannot BELIEVE that this is some people’s real life,” someone reveals.

The Knicks and Pacers rekindled one of the great rivalries in the Eastern Conference on Monday night, as they tipped off Game 1 of their second round series in Madison Square Garden. It was the first meeting in the playoffs since 2013 and only the second in the last two decades, but the two teams share a tremendous history in the postseason from the 90s.

This year’s edition features some other fascinating storylines beyond a rivalry most of the players involved don’t really remember (but fans certainly do). You have OG Anunoby and Pascal Siakam, former Raptors teammates, now playing key roles for the Knicks and Pacers and spending a lot of time matched up with one another in Game 1. There’s also Obi Toppin, who was traded from New York to Indiana in the offseason for a bunch of second round picks after never quite finding his footing with the Knicks, but thriving with the high-flying Pacers.

Toppin had a nice night in Game 1, scoring 12 points and pulling down six boards in the first three quarters of action, giving the Pacers a jolt of energy at the four spot. In the late third quarter, the former Dunk Contest champ got a steal and a breakaway and decided to put a little extra something on display, going between the legs for the best dunk of the postseason thus far.

It takes some real bravery to go Eastbay Funk in a playoff game — especially on a fast break where, while no one was in front of him, the trailing defender wasn’t that far behind. Toppin executed it brilliantly and had the Pacers bench going crazy and even the Garden crowd couldn’t help but offer some “oooohs” before getting back to boos.

The Cleveland Cavaliers will begin their Eastern Conference semifinals series on Tuesday night in Boston, as they will have to figure out how to handle the top-seeded Celtics coming off of a grueling 7-game series against Orlando.

However, that’s the challenge they’d prefer to have over having their offseason start early, and they’re in that position largely because of the effort of Donovan Mitchell. The star guard scored 89 points over Games 6 and 7 of the series and averaged 28.7 points across all seven games, even as he battles a lingering knee injury. While Mitchell put the team on his back in the third quarter of Game 7 to get them into the lead, he knew he’d need help to get across the finish line against a gritty Magic squad.

The 7-year veteran showed his leadership as the game got to the fourth quarter, pulling Darius Garland close amid a woeful shooting performance and trying to pump him up.

On Monday, the Cavaliers released a video from inside that scene on the bench with their two star guards, and the message from Mitchell was simple: I believe in you, believe in yourself.

Garland’s confidence was clearly a bit shaken in the game after an ice cold shooting spell, and he’s had some struggles in the second half of the year ever since returning from injury. That conversation paid off in the fourth quarter when Garland drilled the dagger three from the corner, and the first person waiting to celebrate the shot with him was Mitchell.

It’s a cool glimpse inside that moment with those two on the bench. Mitchell could tell his guy needed a pick-up, and rather than telling him “keep shooting” he made the message even simpler by making sure Garland knew his teammates hadn’t lost faith in him despite a rough shooting night. If the Cavs are going to have any chance against Boston, Garland’s going to have to be that All-Star caliber player he’s been in the past. To do that, he’ll need to get his swagger back as a shot-maker, and maybe this message from Mitchell and hitting some shots in the fourth quarter of Game 7 can get him going.

Isaiah Hartenstein has turned himself into a valuable member of the New York Knicks’ starting lineup. After bouncing around during his first few years in the league, Hartenstein has carved out quite a niche with the Knicks, as his physicality, rebounding, and deft touch around the rim have all be crucial as the team has turned into a contender in the Eastern Conference this year.

One thing Hartenstein is decidedly not known for is three-point shooting, as he’s 27-for-87 (31 percent) in his career and only went 1-for-3 from deep this year. Heading into Monday night’s Game 1 between the Knicks and the Indiana Pacers, Hartenstein had never made a triple in 19 playoff games. But in his 20th playoff game, Hartenstein finally made a three, and it was a pretty impressive one, because he pulled up from behind halfcourt at the end of the first half and drilled one from very long range.

With this three, Hartenstein is 1-for-2 from deep in his playoff career. That makes him a 50 percent shooter, and while this means absolutely nothing because Tom Thibodeau is not gonna suddenly ask him to be Karl-Anthony Towns, it’s a very nice way to get his first career postseason triple.

Father Time is catching up with LeBron James. Sure, you might not know that based on what he’s still capable of doing on the floor — we’ve never seen a player consistently reach the highs James is capable of reaching at his age — but he’s going to turn 40 in December and he’s already started speaking about the end of his basketball playing career.

It’s led to plenty of speculation about when James is going to retire, and if Charles Barkley has his way, it’ll happen sooner rather than later. Barkley appeared on Shannon Sharpe’s “Club Shay Shay” podcast and used his own experience at the end of his career to make the argument that James should retire “while he can still play.”

“I hope he retires soon,” Barkley said. “Because I hated the way I retired, cause I sucked.”

Barkley then made the case that “it ends badly for every jock,” and went on to point out some of the other Hall of Fame inductees who hung on for way too long, like Michael Jordan with the Washington Wizards and Patrick Ewing with the Orlando Magic.

“I remember telling myself my last two years, ‘Ok, I’m gonna get myself in great shape this summer, I’m gonna have a good year, then I’m gonna retire,’” Barkley said. “Then I figured out, like, playing against air, everybody’s good against air. Everybody is great against air. But when that 25-year-old is looking at you like, licking his lips, you’re like, ‘Oh, sh*t.’ And there’s nothing you can do.”

Every now and then, the NBA’s award season gives us a result that absolutely no one saw coming. The 2023-24 Rookie of the Year award was not one of those times, as the frontrunner to take home the Wilt Chamberlain trophy did just that. On Monday night, TNT’s NBA crew announced that San Antonio Spurs superstar Victor Wembanyama will become the third player in franchise history to take home the award.

Wembanyama becoming the league’s best first-year player seemed to be an inevitability when the Spurs took him No. 1 overall in the 2023 NBA Draft. While he took a few months to really find his footing in the NBA, he started to blossom when the calendar turned to January and never looked back. By the time the year came to an end, Wembanyama had already started to dominate on the offensive end of the floor, and established himself as one of the league’s most devastating defensive players — he is a finalist for the Defensive Player of the Year award, which will be handed out on Tuesday night.

On the year, Wembanyama averaged 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.2 steals, and a league-best 3.6 blocks in 29.7 minutes per game while shooting 46.5 percent from the field. He joins the last two Spurs players to get selected No. 1 overall, David Robinson and Tim Duncan, in winning the award.

Wembaynama earned all 99 first place votes, beating out Charlotte’s Brandon Miller, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, and Oklahoma City’s Chet Holmgren, the No. 2 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft who missed all of last year with an injury.

For nearly two decades, people have been enjoying “Got Talent” competitions all over the world, inspired by the first “America’s Got Talent” in 2006. And thanks to social media and YouTube, we can enjoy the most memorable auditions over and over again.

For instance, this one from Taryn Charles on the 2024 season of “Britain’s Got Talent.”

Charles is a music teacher who works with special needs kids. She even brought one of her students and her parent to be part of the audience during her audition. When the judges asked why she wanted to be on “Britain’s Got Talent,” Charles said, “I love to make people smile and I think my voice is alright.”

Talk about an understatement.

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As she stands waiting for the music to start, she shakes her hand by her side a few times, clearly getting some nerves out. But as soon as she starts to sing the first line, “Looking out on the morning rain, I used to feel so uninspired…” it’s clear from her rich, raspy voice and easy stage presence that she’s got something special.

And it only gets better from there. “(You Make Me Feel Like a) Natural Woman” was written by singer-songwriter Carole King, then famously covered by Aretha Franklin, which is a hard act to follow. But Charles knocked it out of the park, blowing away the audience and judges alike. In fact, the performance earned her not one but two standing ovations and inspired judge Bruno Tonioli to smash the Golden Buzzer button before the judges even began to offer their feedback.

Watch:

What makes this performance especially memorable is how humble and unassuming Charles is before and after her knock-out performance. If you didn’t watch til the very end, you may have missed her hilariously real, “I think I’ve wet myself,” which only makes her even more endearing.

“WOW I was blown away with her angelic and powerful voice,” wrote one commenter. “And yet she is so humble and has a beautiful soul. Plus, I have never in my life seen a double standing ovation, she so deserves a golden buzzer, wishing her the best success.”

“This is how you do an audition, stunning tone to her voice…..if anyone deserves a chance it’s this lady……BOOM!!” wrote another.

“This was so inspirational. Taryn I am in tears,” shared another. “I know what it feels like to struggle with self-worth. You are a mirror to show me that that those people are not always right. You are phenomenally gifted and you have an amazing career as a professional singer ahead of you! Blessings!”

Talent competition judges often warn contestants about the challenge of singing songs done by big vocal divas, and we’ve seen singers attempt to sing the likes of Whitney Houston or Mariah Carey and fall flat. It’s not easy to sing an iconic song most people associate with Aretha Franklin—the Queen of Soul and Rolling Stone’s #1 singer of all time—and have any hope of impressing people. And yet, Taryn Charles managed to make the song her own and wow everyone in the process with her unique voice.

We’ll definitely be keeping an eye on this humble music teacher as she makes her way through the “Britain’s Got Talent” gauntlet. Heck of a way to kick it off.

Ryan Gosling‘s career evolution is one of interesting twists, unique turns, and a certain magnetism that has always granted him passageway, whether he was playing a strung-out teacher, a social outcast with a sex doll girlfriend, an astronaut, spiraling soon-to-be divorcee, stunt driver with a violent streak, or music man. It’s a climb from child acting roles and the Mickey Mouse Club that’s made most impressive by the simple fact that Gosling still seems ultra choosy when it comes to the projects, filmmakers, and actors he works with, never giving us the chance to tire of seeing him on the screen or worry that he’ll disappoint with a flat performance in an uninspired role. That’s why we wanted to be ultra choosy here, making hard cuts and having full disagreements about the ultimate ranking of Gosling’s best work, including the recent action rom-com, The Fall Guy. So, if you think we missed something or think something else should be higher, believe me, we understand because chances are we had that fight while pulling this together. Nevertheless, here’s where we wound up, forced to pick from some of the best work of this century for a leading, song and dance, action guy with a well of intensity and a willingness to not take himself too seriously.

15. Only God Forgives (2013)

Gosling reunited with Drive director Nicolas Winding Refn for this arthouse grind that’s basically no plot, all vibes. And violence. So much violence. But the actor sells every bit of it, playing a hard-to-root-for anti-hero who grunts and punches his way through Bangkok’s seedy criminal underground. An almost speechless turn, Gosling does the most with what little the script gives him. – Toomer

14. Murder By Numbers (2002)

In the early aughts a baby-faced Gosling decided to chew some scenery in this crime thriller starring Sandra Bullock as a dogged-detective with an axe to grind. As Richard, a high school psycho whose extracurricular activities include strangling innocent women, Gosling plays the kind of bad boy Taylor Swift writes songs about, a rich teen with greasy hair and a hellish idea of fun. He’s obviously having a fantastic time, but Gosling never lets the villainy of Richard stray into camp territory, making him all the more terrifying. – Toomer

13. The Big Short (2015)

Neither Margot Robbie in a bubble bath nor Gosling’s grand hand gestures in a boardroom can dumb down the events that led to the housing crisis enough for them to be even mildly entertaining. And yet, Gosling’s performance as Jared Vennett, a Deutsche Bank executive with sleaze oozing from every pore, is just blunt enough to let us know he’s one of the bad guys in this venture. Plus, he’s got one of the most bizarre scenes in the whole film, a business pitch filled with racist jokes, Jenga props, and Gosling whispering “I smell money,” to a floor-to-ceiling window in a New York high rise. – Toomer

12. Blade Runner 2049 (2017)

This Denis Villeneuve-directed sci-fi sequel didn’t earn enough love from critics when it landed in theaters a few years ago but, as is the case with everything, none of that was Ryan Gosling’s fault. As K, a non-human officer tasked with hunting down rogue replicants, Gosling is stoic, uttering a handful of words over the film’s lengthy runtime. Lonely and isolated, he seeks comfort in an artificial intelligence program and finds meaning in an unearthed conspiracy that sees him partnering with Harrison Ford’s Rick Deckard to solve. They say the mark of a good actor is one who can convey a spectrum of emotions with just one look. Blade Runner 2049 feels like Gosling and Villeneuve got together solely to test that hypothesis. – Toomer

11. First Man (2018)

Another project with La La Land director Damien Chazelle, First Man sends Gosling into space as pioneering astronaut Neil Armstrong. But any zero-gravity shenanigans take a backseat to the introspective character study Gosling interests us in with his take on one of history’s most famous heroes. Demure yet determined, Armstrong was a man intent on etching his name in the annals of time and Gosling never shies away from the consequences of that driven-by-ego dream, showing him as goal-oriented to the point of obsession, and obsessive to the detriment of those who loves him most. – Toomer

10. Half Nelson (2006)

The inner city educator/savior film, long a critical fave, got a needed reinvention in filmmaking duo Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s feature debut with Gosling earning an Oscar nomination for his work as a teacher trying and failing to manage and mask his drug addiction. At 26, Gosling had already transitioned from child actor to terrifyingly intense turns in Believer and the aforementioned Murder By Numbers. The success of The Notebook offered another path of soft mainstream dramas, but Gosling’s ability to play vulnerable and damaged while still exuding a naturalistic charm in Half Nelson created a career off-ramp. This doubtlessly led to more varied and interesting scenic route with roles in Lars And The Real Girl, Blue Valentine, and Drive. – Tabrys

9. The Notebook (2004)

On paper, the choice between Ryan Gosling and James Marsden in The Notebook is a no-brainer. One’s a broke war vet fixing up a rotting house in the hopes that his teenage sweetheart might one day come back to him. The other’s a rich, handsome suitor with some serious dance moves and an endless amount of patience. Sorry to Noah Calhoun, but if Gosling hadn’t infused the character with unlimited amounts of visceral yearning and desperate desire, Rachel McAdams wouldn’t have imploded her life for that man. And we would’ve supported her in that choice. – Toomer

8. Lars And The Real Girl (2007)

Lars And The Real Girl goes from being a movie about a socially awkward man weirding out his family and community by introducing a life-sized doll as his girlfriend to a surprisingly tender story about what it takes, sometimes, to draw someone out of their shell. Gosling is deft in his portrayal of a character who is lost in a fiction he builds for himself until he finds something that might just be really real. – Tabrys

7. Crazy Stupid Love (2011)

Gosling takes his “Hey Girl” meme-ergy to the extreme in this silly rom-com that’s experiencing a bit of a resurgence thanks to TikTok. Here he plays Jacob, an uber-wealthy playboy dripping in charisma and designer suits who somehow agrees to give Steve Carell’s divorced dad, Cal, a makeover. That mostly involves tossing his New Balance sneakers in the trash and teaching him to chat up women using Dirty Dancing references, but things get complicated when Jacob unknowingly falls for Cal’s daughter (played by repeat collaborator Emma Stone). With his photoshopped abs and sensual scarfing down of a slice of pizza, Gosling leans into the womanizing vibes, but finds a surprising amount of vulnerability in the character that elevates the whole thing. – Toomer

6. The Fall Guy (2024)

Though it’s technically a remake of a popular ‘80s TV show and a salute to the underappreciated stunt community, The Fall Guy mostly feels like a rom-com with an action twist, an oft-attempted (Ghosted, The Lost City) and rarely well-executed genremash. But where others have failed, this one absolutely delivers thanks to the off-the-charts chemistry of Gosling and Emily Blunt. One part Ken and one part Holland March from The Nice Guys, Gosling’s Colt Seavers is a perfectly goofy, well-meaning himbo head over heels in love and eager to save the day for Blunt’s director character while also getting thrust into a little sleuthing in between his stunts. We don’t know how likely a sequel is to The Fall Guy, but this amalgamation feels like Gosling’s most perfect form, especially if he’s happiest playing fun roles and avoiding some of the more tortured characters he played in the past. – Tabrys

5. La La Land (2016)

Nearly a decade ago, Ryan Gosling saved jazz. He did it by tapping into those Mickey Mouse Club roots to play Sebastian “Seb” Wilder, a struggling pianist whose entire personality can be summed up as “white guy, loves jazz.” And yet, despite his lack of a well-paying job, his dismal career prospects, and the aimless nature of his life, Gosling’s chemistry with star Emma Stone more than convinces us that dating an LA creative might actually be a good idea. In La La Land, the actor harnesses every tool in his artistic arsenal to give us a swoon-worthy love story with a bitter-sweet ending. It’s almost enough to excuse that Oscar’s gaffe. – Toomer

4. Blue Valentine (2010)

The heartrending destruction of a marriage is shown in great detail with Gosling and Michelle Williams playing a couple living through the tragedy of growing apart while also showing us the origins of their heady love story. From writer/director Derek Cianfrance, Blue Valentine is a deeply affecting film and a labor of love for Cianfrance, Gosling, and Williams that they nurtured for years. While the term disaster film is typically reserved for ones where cities are decimated by space aliens or earthquakes, this also fits, showing a kind of devastation that’ll hit in a more personal way for anyone who has ever felt love slip away from their grasp. – Tabrys

3. Drive (2011)

That scorpion jacket, that thumping neon-dream soundtrack, the balletic car chases, and the contrast between near wordlessness and thunderous violence from Gosling’s wheelman turned protector – you could make a case that Drive is Gosling’s best work, but you’d die on a hill defending it as his coolest. A hyper-stylized neo-noir LA crime story with big nods to Michael Mann films and westerns, Drive commits the sin of wanting to be iconic, but it also accomplishes that feat with Gosling at the center of it all in what was and will forever be a star-making turn. Eminently re-watchable, Drive lingers in the corner reminding us of Gosling’s sharp edge even as we fall deeper and deeper in love with the idea of him as, to quote Brian Grubb, “a charming lil goofball.” – Tabrys

2. The Nice Guys (2016)

Written and directed by Shane Black and cut from the same cloth as his Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang, Nice Guys takes us to the ‘70s, introducing us to a pair of PIs who go too hard and play too loose while bumbling through their day to day. Pushed together by circumstance, they annoy each other to the point of violence and deception before, somehow, breaking the case. It’s an odd pairing, Gosling and Russell Crowe, each at very different stages in their career and neither really known for their comedic chops. But the subversion of a “type” is such a beautiful thing and something Gosling keeps doing over and over again in winning performances that make us long for more. – Tabrys

1. Barbie (2023)

Mojo Dojo Casa Houses. Mini fridge meltdowns. Singin’ in the Rain-style dance-offs. His sincere utterance of the phrase “Just Beach.” It’s almost misogynistic how good Ryan Gosling is in this movie. As Ken, Barbie’s himbo sidekick perpetually longing for the warmth of her blue-eyed gaze, Gosling is both in on the joke, and the joke itself. His entire performance is an exaggerated wink to camera, the consequence of a Hollywood heartthrob happy to objectify himself for the collective good. His comedic timing is a thing of beauty, his ability to “play dumb, look pretty” entirely unmatched. And yet, for all the laughs, Gosling genuinely sympathizes with Ken and the unrealistic standards he has – for himself and his relationship with a plastic doll craving sentience and independence. And he makes us feel for Ken too, despite all the horse-girl propaganda and Matchbox Twenty ballads. Gosling didn’t have to Ken that hard, but cinema is all the better for it. – Toomer