“L” is for the way Lars looks at her…
“O” he bought her at an Online store…
“V” she’s Very very, extraordinary, now
“E” she’s Even more than plastic dressed up like a whore…
But love isn’t all director Craig Gillespie’s new film, “Lars and the Real Girl,” can give to you. Following the footsteps of “Little Miss Sunshine” and “40-Year-Old Virgin,” this quirky, charming and loveable film is the romantic story of a man and his sex doll.
Ryan Gosling plays Lars, a pathologically bashful 27-year-old whose neglected childhood has transformed him into a fidgety sociopath. He recoils from hugs, stumbles through awkward conversations with his flirty new coworker, Margo, and is thankful he lives in the Midwest where he can bundle up during winter to escape the “burn” of physical contact. When he isn’t hiding in a church pew or office cubicle, Lars secludes himself in a remodeled garage, attached to his childhood house and detached from the outside world.
Things change when Lars tells his brother and sister-in-law (who live in the connected house) that he has a new girlfriend. Naturally, they’re elated… until he introduces them to Bianca—a life-size, anatomically correct Barbie he purchased online. Far from the perversion this premise suggests, Lars’ intentions are completely wholesome since, to him, Bianca is real—a half-Brazilian, half-Dutch delusion in fishnet stockings. She’s also a missionary, loves kids and doesn’t have much of an appetite.
The ensuing plot hilariously combines “Harvey” and “Weird Science” while staying rooted in serious issues of introversion and loneliness. Screenwriter Nancy Oliver (“Six Feet Under”) keeps the script from being a downer by instilling rare warmth in Lars’ fellow townspeople and nearby family who, on a psychologist’s suggestion, make Bianca feel right at home. Their kindness rarely comes off as fake or cheesy, even when they go out of their way to invite Bianca to the mall, office parties and church meetings, allowing Lars to rediscover his social skills through Bianca’s popularity.
Gosling’s vulnerable performance as a damaged human being comes closer than anyone since Adam Sandler in “Punch-Drunk Love” to nailing the vicious cycle of shyness enforcing loneliness and vice versa, though the tone of this film is much more uplifting.
Meanwhile, Emily Mortimer delivers a likeable and emotional performance as the concerned sister-in-law while Kelli Garner lends a delicate sincerity to Margo, who must compete for Lars’ affections with the personalized girl of his dreams. Although the film’s leading lady is made of silicone, there’s nothing artificial about Lars and Margo’s indie-style romance.
This film is about the yearning for human affection and our relentless pursuit to fill the empty cavity where love should be, regardless of our antisocial inclinations. It’s one of those rare, Frank Capra-esque films of hope that can restore your belief in the goodness of people while melting cold cynicism and thawing even the most frostbitten film critics. Like its synthetic star, “Lars and the Real Girl” begs to be embraced and is customized for your pleasure.
