Ryan Gosling is the man.

Seriously.

That guy can play nearly any role in any genre and comes across as genuine. He smiles and girls crumble. Guys think he’s a badass.

Although “Gangster Squad” is essentially Sargent John O’Mara’s (Josh Brolin) story, Gosling tends to steal the show. He’s the only character that offers depth in a piece that is reflective of the post-war time it’s set in.

It is very obvious who the bad guys are, and they shoot like stormtroopers. It’s good vs. evil, and it is very black and white. The heroes dive around with super-human grace, and the bad guys scowl as they punch holes in the wall behind them.

There is, however, something to be said for a movie that doesn’t think too much of itself. Gangster Squad, at its core, is a popcorn action flick. It has an A-list cast, but the vast majority of the film is a shootout.

A shoehorned romance plot between crime boss Mickey (Sean Penn), Grace (Emma Stone) and Gosling’s character tends to fall flat, with all of the blame on Stone. She doesn’t sell being a crime lord’s captive, nor does she sell being a tortured soul wanting to escape.

It’s not that Stone is a bad actress, she was just completely miscast. She’s wonderful in awkward comedies. She can even pass for Spiderman’s girlfriend. But she’s not the bombshell the plot called for. Director Ruben Fleischer wants the audience to believe she’s this sultry tempest, reminiscent of old-school noir style movies.

Outside of Stone, Fleischer succeeds at establishing nearly every other noir element he was looking for. There is a ton of black and white throughout the film, whether in scenery or dress. Harsh shadows splash across the screen, giving the entire film a dark feel. Dialogue is quick, flat and natural. There are also a number of snappy one-liners. Usually, the only thing that interrupts the short bursts of dialogue is someone smoking a cigarette. Nick Nolte sounds like he swallowed a carton of cigarettes just to sound even more dark.

Penn is brutally satisfying as a crime boss. I had my doubts about how well he could play such a role, looking so small. But the man is pure evil. He has absolutely zero remorse and is all about progress.

The “Gangster Squad,” includes a wonderful group of actors. Anthony Mackie, in particular, stands out as one of the more underrated talents in this film. Mackie has been in numerous films in his career, but he’s still not widely recognized. Hopefully his rumored casting as the Falcon in Avengers 2 will help propel him to stardom.

“Gangster Squad” succeeds at what it set out to do. With the exception of Emma Stone, the cast is rock-solid, and the script is clean. It’s a good noir-style shoot-em-up where you know which side to cheer for.