Lars and the Real Girl stars Ryan Gosling as Lars, a normal but seemingly depressed and almost disturbed young man. He lives in the garage of the house that his father left to him and his brother (Paul Schneider). He lives alone in a minimalist room and maintain little human contact despite his sister-in-law’s (Emily Mortimer) constant attempts to get him to eat dinner at the house. Even at work he engages in little conversation. A coworker, Margo (Kelli Garner), clearly has romantic interests in Lars but he does not reciprocate these feelings. One day, Lars comes to his brother’s house willingly and with a smile on his face. He tells them that he met a girl online and that she is coming to stay with them. His brother and sister-in-law get extremely excited but are crushed when they learn that his new girlfriend is actually a RealDoll, a realistic sex doll. They become worried about Lars’ behavior and talk to the town physician/psychologist (Patricia Clarkson) and she tells them to play along and that the whole situation is in his head and that he will end it when he’s ready. At first, playing along with Lars is taxing on everyone around him, but eventually his fake girlfriend, Bianca, grows on everyone in the town.
Lars and the Real Girl is a very quirky pseudo-comedy that tugs at a lot of different emotions. It was an incredibly difficult film to watch as it was almost depressing. The film makes you feel sorry for Lars and the fact that he is so lonely, but at the same time shows you that happiness can come from anywhere. Situations involving Lars taking Bianca out to public places are almost painful to watch until the entire town begins to embrace Bianca. However, as the town starts to enjoy her company, Lars realizes that they are spending more time with her the he is. As his self-controlled “game” takes a turn for the worse, emotions fly.
The end scene is nothing short of beautiful. Without spoiling the plot, it leaves you both sad and happy in different ways.
Ryan Gosling is absolutely incredible and the rest of the cast is awesome. Gosling completely absorbs the role of Lars and makes you truly believe that the character is real. Not many actors are able to make you forgot that they are actors during the course of a film, but he pulls it off flawlessly. Lars and the Real Girl is a totally character driven piece and relies heavily on the acting, and absolutely everyone satisfies.
As I said, it is very difficult to watch but the cinematography of the movie is amazing. The colors add to the overall tone of the film and just serve to depress you, which is the point.
Lars and the Real Girl gets a 9.0/10.
