One of the big winners of 2023 was Ryan Gosling, who won hearts, and an Oscar nomination, for his turn as Ken in Greta Gerwig’s massive and acclaimed hit, Barbie. But most of his career — which began alongside Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake and others in the New Mickey Mouse Club — has been dominated by weird, dark roles that are definitely not funny.
As an adult, he first caught the attention of critics as a Jewish neo-Nazi in 2001’s The Believer and then as a teacher addicted to heroin in 2006’s Half Nelson. He followed up that movie with 2007’s Lars and the Real Girl, a sweet comedy that featured him in a committed relationship with a sex doll.
One of his most underseen and underrated movies is Andrew Jarecki’s All Good Things, a crime thriller inspired by the shocking real-life case of Robert Durst, who got his own spotlight in the true crime docuseries The Jinx. Co-starring Kirsten Dunst, the movie was largely ignored when it was released in 2010, and is virtually forgotten today. That’s a crime all on its own, as the movie features one of Gosling’s best performances and a story that’s riveting from start to finish.
What is All Good Things About?
Gosling plays David Marks, the son of a wealthy New York City real estate tycoon Sanford Marks (Frank Langella). One day, David impulsively marries the lower-class Katie McCarthy (Dunst). Their relationship starts out great: they move to Vermont, start a health food store called All Good Things, and establish a modest life that is completely different from David’s privileged upbringing.
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Their reverie doesn’t last as David can’t quite pull himself away from his father’s powerful influence. Soon, David is enrolled in medical school to please Sanford and begins to neglect Katie. Things come to a head when Katie becomes pregnant, which disrupts David’s plans. He doesn’t want children for reasons that are never fully explained, and he’s adamant that she get an abortion she really doesn’t want.
When Katie contemplates a divorce and begins to accumulate evidence that will support her case, she suddenly disappears. What happened to her? And did David, or his influential family, have anything to do with it?
What Makes All Good Things Worth Watching?
That’s only the beginning of a long, strange story that jumps forward in time and involves not one but two mysterious deaths and a trial with a shocking ending. Some may call this plot too ridiculous to believe, and maybe it is, but because it’s based on a real case, it’s both effective and chilling. The fact that this happened in real life gives All Good Things an authenticity that few films in this genre possess. No one’s boiling bunnies or stabbing people with ice picks here–what you see is fictionalized, but based on real people and real events.
As engrossing as All Good Things’ story is, it would mean nothing if the cast wasn’t so effective. Some props should be given to Dunst for a tricky role that could’ve devolved into a perpetually complaining spouse. That her Katie is always sympathetic, and never pathetic, is a testament to Dunst’s talent as an actress, who finds shades of depth in almost any role she embodies. She’d later win awards for Melancholia and The Power of the Dog, but her work here is just as good and convincing.
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Let’s talk a little bit about this film’s supporting cast, which is robust with both character actors you’d expect in this type of picture and comedic actors who show a different side of themselves. As Sanford, Langella is wonderful as a corrupt patriarch who wants to control his son. Nick Offerman and Kristen Wiig pop up, too, and as great as they are in such comedies as Parks and Recreation and Bridesmaids, respectively, their performances in this movie make you want them to take on more dramatic roles.
It’s Gosling, though, who dominates the movie. His David is many things: a loving husband, a dutiful son, and a man ultimately torn between his own desires and the ambitions of his family. You have to believe that Katie could fall in love with him and also believe he is able to kill her to get what he wants. Gosling plays both sides of this coin brilliantly, and his performance is just as multilayered as his later work in The Place Beyond the Pines and First Man.
Where is All Good Things Streaming for Free?
The ending of All Good Things isn’t all that surprising if you know anything about the Durst case, but the chief appeal of the movie is Gosling’s performance as David, who can be as charming as his Ken, but he’s also a little more unhinged, and possibly dangerous. The film itself is a quiet thriller less concerned with shock value than with painting a portrait of a man caught between two worlds and a woman who pays too high of a price for his ambitions.
See Ryan Gosling’s Hotness Evolution
It may be forgotten, but it’s not gone, and thanks to Tubi, you can stream it now for free. Don’t miss out on watching one of 2010’s best thrillers.
All Good Things is streaming on Tubi now.
