How to dress like Ryan Gosling in Crazy, Stupid Love — For the Love of Suits (Classic style from 007 James Bond to David Bowie.) (2024)

Or how not to dress like a toddler.

Although ostensibly a romcom this is very much a movie about two men. One a burnt out middle aged soon to be divorced husband, the other a pick up artist - although one with charm and depth. However for us it is an opportunity to examine the excellent costume department’s skilful story telling through the characters’ opposing wardrobes.

The excellent opening sequence tells us all we need to know about Cal, played by Steve Carell, before we even see his face which is quite pertinent. We are actually judged by people we meet long before we speak by how we present ourselves and the jaded dad sneakers tell how Cal has already given up on himself before anyone else. He is seriously underdressed for the classy restaurant in which he is having dinner with his wife. I actually like his corduroy jacket but his overall ensemble is lazy and lacking, shabby and deflated.

Contrast that with Ryan Gosling’s character Jacob. We meet him in a co*cktail bar first hitting on Hannah with a cheesy line but he follows it up with some genuinely funny quips showing off his wit and charm. And he is dressed to match.

Also one of the first things we see of Jacob are his leather well polished dark brown Oxfords walking across the floor in contrast to Cal’s dirty New Balances. He is wearing a full suit, a killer burgundy single breast with a well chosen blue shirt to lighten it up and a silky green pocket square to round off the outfit. Very classy for anyone on a night out who doesn’t feel like dressing down but also doesn’t want to look like them came straight from the office.

So of naturally they happen to run into each other in a bar where Cal notices the well dressed Jacob making two beautiful women laugh and pronounces him as ‘gay’. This joke is quite significant as (although it has never happened to me or perhaps anyone) one of the fears of young men wanting to dress up is that their friends or colleagues may think they look gay. And it is true to form that the words spill from the lips of a bitter and jealous Cal who is having no success. So rest assured if anyone does mock your desire to dress up it comes form a place of jealousy so you must be doing something right.

Once again their clothing is contrasted. Cal is back in presumably his only sports coat and a stripy floppy polo underneath. Jacob - once again in a sharp suit, it appears to be the same burgundy suit as previously but this time with a white shirt showing how flexible one suit can be simply by choosing a different shirt. And of course he has his signature classy touch - a pocket square.

Cal’s next outfit is another collection of garments of gloom. A relaxed-fit button down faded purple untucked shirt, some kid of sports zip up and mom jeans. Much of the problem with Cal’s wardrobe is not the individual items themselves although they are all just too easygoing but more the lack of fit and the attitude he wears them with. You can dress casually and look sharp but Cal looks dull and grey which projects his inner loss of direction. No one may say anything to him about it but this kind of sloppy approach to dress does not go unnoticed.

Here Jacob has on a textured mid grey three piece suit with a black shirt and black pocket square. This could easily be worn with a white shirt during the day for work and the black shirt after hours for a very different feel. Two suits in one with a simple change of shirt. Gosling sums up the problem with Cal’s clothing succinctly and humorously.

“You’ve got a supercuts haircut… and you’re wearing a 44 when you should be wearing a 42 regular... I am going to help you rediscover your manhood.”

This is quite a significant quip. Wearing the wrong size is a major tripping point. You will instantly lower your style on even the most expensive suit if the size is off. A cheap suit from M&S that fits perfectly will look much better than an Armani suit that is the a size or two too big. I should know. I made that exact mistake and have the photos to prove it. And if you are a young man you will look like you borrowed your dad’s and that is not a good look. And as Ryan Gosling remarks, it is not manly.

However even Jacob makes a classic mistake with his next suit. He has on a cool soft fabric black two piece with brown trimmings and a blue pinstripe shirt and looking sharp as usual but hold on… he is wearing tan shoes. Never wear light brown shoes with a dark suit. It drags attention away from your face and down to your feet. And unless you are a shoe salesman that is not where you want people looking when you re trying to talk to them.

And Cal? Well Cal is wearing his shapeless jeans with an oversized yellow stripy t-shirt that makes him looks like a supersized toddler.

What I like about this movie is that fact that Ryan Gosling doesn’t try to make Steve Carell into a carbon copy of himself. But upgrades his look to a sharper smarter version of his own taste. Better fitting jackets. Proper shirts and neckties. And of course real shoes. He successfully completes his mission of helping mould Cal back into the man he was and neither a mini Jacob nor an overgrown child. And I think that is the goal of every well dressed man, to become a better version of himself. When you show that you respect yourself others will follow.