Ryan Gosling's Forgotten Directorial Debut Is A Cult Fantasy Movie Worth Revisiting

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Based on the initial reactions, Ryan Gosling has another hit on his hands with "Project Hail Mary." That's good news at a time when the movie industry is on precarious ground. But it also provides an opportunity to highlight Gosling's feature directorial debut, "Lost River." It didn't impress critics like "Project Hail Mary," but is well worth a revisit in 2026. 

The fantasy drama seemed to upset quite a lot of people at the time. One of the harshest assessments came from Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian, who in his two-star review described the film as "colossally indulgent, shapeless, often fantastically and unthinkingly offensive and at all times insufferably conceited." But even Bradshaw had to admit to being frustrated due to the fact that the film "sometimes isn't so bad." As the reviewer went on to write, "There is something in there somewhere — striking images and moments, and the crazy energy of a folie de grandeur."

Bradshaw had identified something that would prove to be the film's saving grace. "Lost River" may have been a critical flop upon its debut, but it has since cultivated a cult following. As writer Alex Bauer noted in 2016, only two years after its release, "the film has steadily been earning some praise — its cult film status growing." Since then, plenty of folks on Letterboxd have shown their love and appreciation for "Lost River," which, with its hauntingly beautiful cinematography and heavy focus on vibe over story, might just have been ahead of its time. Today, "Lost River" might not be remembered as one of the best directorial debuts from actors, but with every passing year, it inches a little closer.

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"Lost River" was written, co-produced, and directed by Ryan Gosling. It came in the wake of his performances in two Nicolas Winding Refn movies, most notably the ultimate sleek and sexy neo-noir "Drive" (2011), and the 2013 revenge thriller "Only God Forgives." The latter wasn't exactly a critical hit, but "Drive" remains one of, if not the best Gosling movie ever made, and it seems it and Refn himself were big influences on the actor's directorial sensibility.

"Lost River" certainly features a very Refn-inspired aesthetic, but it's also very much its own thing. The film stars Christina Hendricks as Billy, a mother to two sons, teenager Bones (Iain De Caestecker) and toddler Franky (Landyn Joseph Stewart). They live in a dilapidated area of Detroit, populated by abandoned, burned-out houses, where Bones has to scrounge for copper wire just to help keep the family afloat. Within this wasteland, several monsters lurk, including Matt Smith's Bully, who has a monopoly on the copper wire theft enterprise. Bones quickly runs afoul of the villain, making him a target. Meanwhile, Bill accepts a job working at a shady nightclub where women perform mock acts of self-mutilation for the amusement of perverse audience members. Gosling's now-wife Eva Mendes appears here in her final film role as a cabaret performer named Cat who befriends Billy.

While there is a story in "Lost River," most of the film plays out like a neon-drenched fever dream. Whether that appeals to your aesthetic sense will likely dictate how much you enjoy the film. But even those critics who disliked the movie (and there were a lot) had to admit that Gosling was on to something.

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"Lost River" premiered at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival ahead of its release in the United States in April 2015. Sadly, the reviews simply weren't very good. Today, the film bears a critic score of 30% on Rotten Tomatoes. Don't let that put you off, because there are plenty of reasons to like the movie, as evidenced by many critics' praise for aspects of it in otherwise negative reviews. Though Brian Tellerico of RogerEbert.com found the film to be "a piece with images that connect only superficially, never finding the thematic resonance of a [David] Lynch or [Terrence] Malick vision," he did note that it was "far from horrible." The reviewer even remarked that "Lost River" showcased "many interesting ideas and strong visual compositions."

There's no doubt that cinematographer Benoît Debie did an incredible job on the visuals for the movie, which is certainly indebted to Nicolas Winding Refn, David Lynch, and Terrence Malick. But its style also isn't that far removed from some of the shots in one of the best horror movies of 2024: "I Saw the TV Glow." That's significant, as while "Lost River" might have felt derivative in 2014, in the mid-2020s, it wouldn't feel all that out of place as a film from this new generation of filmmakers who place aesthetics and vibe above all else. "I Saw the TV Glow" and "Skinamarink" are just two examples from directors who have clearly been influenced by spending their formative years online and seem to have brought a Tumblr-tinged sensibility to their filmmaking. 

If you like that sort of thing, then far from being a disappointing directorial debut, "Lost River" could be in with a chance of becoming one of your favorite films.