When this movie was recommended to me, it sounded just crazy enough to be really good, but I got stuck on the crazy part. I was told “Ryan Gosling is this guy and he ends up with a doll for a girlfriend. It’s really good.” Yeah, crazy. Straight-jacket wearing, padded-room-dwelling, pink elephant crazy. But let me lay it out for you. Gosling plays Lars Lindstrom, a young man living in a small northern town (seems like
It seems as if there is a history here, but we aren’t pulled into a dark past. Karin is very concerned for Lars, and seems to believe that his actions are getting more and more extreme. Gus, Lars’ brother, seems more or less unconcerned. He passes Lars’ actions off as just a part of who he is, and tries to convince Karin that he doesn’t want or need their help. However, it seems that help may be needed: When Lars is addressed by anyone, he barely responds and hurries away as soon as possible.
Then one day, this quickly shifts. Lars goes to Gus and Karin’s door and asks to speak with both of them. He tells them that he has a visitor, and that he was hoping to introduce her to them. He met her on the internet, and she had come to meet him while on sabbatical from being a missionary. Karin and Gus are thrilled (mostly because he is seeking out human contact) and invite him to bring her for dinner. Cut to the next scene: Gus and Karin staring dumbfounded across the living room at Lars and a giant doll sitting on the couch.
Lars ordered a life-sized sex doll from a website called Real Girls. He names her Bianca, calls her his girlfriend, and seems thoroughly convinced that she is a real person. The following scenes consist of Lars integrating Bianca into his life: taking her out, meeting people, getting to know her, etc. He suddenly becomes happy, friendly and willing to spend time with other people. One might assume that Lars’ relationship with Bianca is just a crazy cover-up so Lars can satisfy his carnal lust. After all, she is a sex doll. But this isn’t the case. In fact, he asks Gus and Karin if Bianca could sleep at their house because she is “very religious.”
The movie goes on as Lars and Bianca’s “relationship” progresses, and as the people in their lives make choices about how to deal with this very inconvenient situation. Ryan Gosling is wonderful as Lars. He accurately reflects the simplicity as well as the complication of his character, and delivers a very moving performance. Emily Mortimer and Paul Schneider as Karin and Gus are perfect as family members dealing with the pain of wanting to help Lars but having no idea how to do so. Overall, the roles were very well-cast and each character provided so much depth without needing tons of screen time.
Somehow, this film manages to avoid wackiness and embraces real life. By convincing Lars that Bianca is sick and needs to see a doctor, Karin is able to get him to see a therapist. When Dr. Dagmar (played by a nicely cast Patricia Clarkson) encourages his family to go along with his delusion, they struggle to accept this but eventually see the futility in trying to change him. They meet with neighbors, friends, and fellow church-goers to explain what is going on, and everyone gradually climbs aboard the crazy train. They open their arms to her and by doing so effectively open their arms to Lars.
Rating: 17
This movie is about Lars, but it isn’t about Lars. Yes, he’s the central character whose name is in the title, but the story is about us, people in community, and what we can do to help others. We’re forced to evaluate what we believe to be “normal” and ask ourselves whether or not the word really matters anyway. It has a great balance between seriousness and light-heartedness and isn’t as off its rocker as it originally may seem. Well directed, well acted, thought-provoking and affecting, Lars and the Real Girl is as genuine as it gets.
4 comments:
Great review, WLC. I'm pretty much right there with you on this film.
Now, the big question, for those of us who saw the film: Do you think Lars has Asberger's Syndrome?
It's possible...I mean, he clearly had difficulty with social interaction, but I don't remember any other typical symptoms that jumped out at me...like atypical language or an obsession with a subject area (other than Bianca).
I'm also reluctant to call Lars' symptoms Asbergerian. Lars' symptoms seemed trauma-induced (death of a parent, perhaps?) rather than genetic. And it seemed his Bianca fixation was an attempt to work out some complicated issues of loss, rather than a manifestation of AS.
That said, I'd like to echo WLC's sentiment about the movie. The nifty thing about this film is what seems crazy at first (Lars' dating a doll) becomes so commonplace by the end that you care what happens to Bianca almost as much as Lars does. It's a nifty trick, and it really does a nice job of asking the audience what's crazy and what's just eccentric.
i just saw the movie, and i have to agree with WLC, too. this is a great movie because it walks the fine line between seriousness and light-heartedness, and never really tips off to one side or the other. also, it makes very good and smooth use of a relatively short running time. it explores the deeper level of multiple stories at the same time. the film is about Lars, mainly, but it's also about the community he lives in. it just takes that first step of going along with Lars's delusion, and after that, everyone around Lars and Bianca start to see things in a new and interesting light. they get back in touch with their sensitivity, and learn anew what it means to care about someone.
Lars is an infinitely interesting character, as well. at the beginning of the film, he is painfully shy and withdrawn, and would just like to be left alone. and yet, he's not surly or bitter, always scowling. he's sweet, sincere, and honestly quite likable. and even with the introduction of Bianca, when he starts to crack the shell, he is very withdrawn. but he is learning, through her, how to be open to other people. he started with a very good thing, though: a brother and sister-in-law who loved him and cared about what happened to him. that, i think, was this film's reason to exist. if Lars didn't have anybody like that in his life, everyone who met Bianca would just say he was nuts and then walk away, and we would have no movie.
the most fascinating line to me was spoken by Dr. Dagmar. "sometimes a mental illness isn't just an illness. sometimes it's communication, or dealing with something that needs to be dealt with," or something to that effect. in this case, Lars's illness concerning Bianca was an opportunity for healing, both in the way that Dr. Dagmar tried to help Lars, and in the way Bianca quietly and against-all-odds made her way into the lives of everyone close to Lars. this entire opportunity is predicated on one thing: love. if love for Lars wasn't there, than the willingness to accept Bianca wouldn't have been there either. what i draw from that is that love has the power to do great things, and even though it may take you on a crazy journey to places you never thought you'd go, it's worth letting it into your heart.
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