Lars and the Real Girl
by Craig Gillespie
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Actor: Emily Mortimer, Kelli Garner, Paul Schneider, R.D. Reid, Ryan GoslingDirector: Craig Gillespie
Brand: TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX HOME ENT
Writer: Nancy Oliver
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language); French (Dubbed); Spanish (Dubbed)
Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 106 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2008-04-15
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
DVD Reviews of Lars and the Real Girl
DVD Review: Angel Plasticus
Summary: 5 Stars
Director Craig Gillespie espouses a New York state of mind, after directing very successful commercials for over 16 years. He was born in Sydney, Australia, and he graduated from a NYC Art School. His first feature film, MR. WOODCOCK (2007), tanked at the box office even though it starred Billy Bob Thornton, and Susan Sarandon. It is possible that the movie released was not his director's cut, or his vision. The LA Times reported that David Dobkin was "brought in" to direct 3 weeks of re-shoots. Considering that most comedies of this ilk are shot in a month, it makes one wonder how much of Gillespie's film was left intact. Regardless, he has sprung back with a vengeance finishing up and releasing his second feature, LARS AND THE REAL GIRL (2007). It was shot in just 31 days. Gillespie had a momentary career as an actor in 1997, doing a walk on in HOTEL DE LOVE. He presently enjoys a reputation as an "actor friendly" kind of director, and he certainly managed to get wonderful performances from his entire cast on LARS.
LARS was written by Nancy Oliver. She is a playwright, like Alan Ball another playwright that worked with her on the HBO series SIX FEET UNDER. She has what I consider an excellent ear for realistic dialogue. She has written a script for LARS where every character is important, necessary, and integral to the whole--pregnant with drama, humor, and the best kinds of human interaction. She and director Gillespie took a subject matter that easily could have lurched into a downward spiral of crudeness that would have made the Farrelly Brothers giddy. Remarkably, sensitively, no character in LARS is made a fool of, is forced to clown around or burlesque the situation, and is not ever expected to sink into a trite and crass caricature that must spew smut for smirks. Regardless of a lackluster trailer, or an "iffy" choice of plot device, understand that there is never anything scatological about LARS. Its inherent decency outshines its odd and unique turn of events.
Ryan Gosling soars and shines in the lead role of Lars Lindstrom. Nominated for a Best Actor Oscar last year for HALF NELSON (2006), he seems to get better with every film role that comes his way -not bad for an actor who was a Mouseketeer with Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears. His Lars is both heartfelt and gut-wrenching, done miraculously without raising his voice. His internal monologue was crystal clear to him, and the camera lens catches it all, the back story, the pain, the fear, and ultimately the joy. His eyes mirror miles of unspoken history, and he was not out of character for even a millisecond. His Lars is a laconic loner who chooses to live in the family garage, who holds down a good and solid job, who attends church regularly, who dresses well and acts appropriately in public. He was not mentally ill; rather mentally still born, wound up as tight as a Rolex mainspring, a man who would rather sit in solitude than embrace "acceptable" levels of socialization.
Lars' brother, Gus (Paul Schneider), and sister-in-law, Karin (Emily Mortimer) try repeatedly to draw Lars feet first out of his preferred loneliness. It is Karin mostly who leads the assault; tackling him in the snow to make a point, even though she is pregnant. They feel that somehow Lars' behavior reflects their "neglect", and so they toil incessantly to drag Lars into the family unit. Lars resists, making promises and then breaking them, making up excuses and lying to friends and family that offer him opportunities to socialize. He only feels "safe" within himself, alone, where his active daydreams could endeavor to counter his dark nightmares.
One day, perhaps tired of the constant cajoling, Lars announced that he now had a "girlfriend" named Bianca, from Brazil, who spoke very little English, and used a wheelchair. Then he brought her in, carrying in his arms a very expensive anatomically-correct helium-filled sex doll, a silicone Sally, and he placed it on the couch next him. He immediately began to talk to her as if she were real, imagining her verbal responses and sharing them. In one of the film's most hilarious scenes, after overcoming the initial shock of this situation, Gus and Karin feel compelled to go along with the "illusion", the fantasy; not seeing it as a ruse, which it might have been. After a few days of this pretense, Gus confronted Lars, informing him that Bianca was not "real". Lars never wavered, paid no attention to him -gave him no reaction at all. So Gus shrugged and returned to his part in the active fantasy.
Through deft direction, artful and clever writing, and terrific acting, we soon witness every character in the story "accept" Bianca as a sentient being, interact with her, and fully integrate her presence, and the notion that Lars and Bianca were a couple, into their daily lives, into the daily goings-on within the community. By virtue of this loving gesture, they soon see Lars, for the first time, reaching out and beginning to shed part of his emotional shell. The "couple" join in and attend parties, church, volunteer at the hospital, and at the school, get involved with the PTA. Children especially love Bianca. Soon she becomes the town "sweetheart", and townsfolk are picking her up for her volunteer work and appointments, like at the beauty shop, by herself. Lars is no longer required to accompany her, and at first this really incensed him. But the largest miracle of this movie is by mid-point we the viewers began to accept Bianca as real. Several times in scenes I swore I saw her head turn slightly, or her eyelashes flicker. When Lars began to realize that he, too, could relate to others without Bianca in attendance, he began to formulate a plan.
Patricia Clarkson, always reliable, was solid, engaging, warm, and lonely as Dagmar, the town doctor -who also happened to be a psychologist. "All doctors have to have a background in psychology to work this far North," Karin said early on. Kelli Garner played Margo, a lonely co-worker with ticks and needs of her own, who kept trying to get Lars interested in her, and her performance was touching and effective. Nancy Beatty played Mrs. Gruner, a nice neighbor, who stole every scene she was in as a no-nonsense loving presence. R.D. Reid was also quite good as Reverend Bock, who facilitated the entering in of the fantasy.
This film tugged hard at my heart strings. By the roll of the ending credits one could hear sniffling aplenty on all sides. We take serious all the transitions that Lars endures and induces as a 27 year old man boy; issues of when does one become "grown up", and what exactly does it mean to "be a man". We discovered what it was that created the sadness within him, that shut him off from others -and we smiled and silently cheered as he resisted it, refocused it, pushing it aside as he moved on toward a more meaningful life. Yes, we could see the "feel good" ending approaching, but alas we were happy to welcome it.
Description of Lars and the Real Girl
Sometimes you find love where you'd least expect it. Just ask Lars (Gosling) a sweet but quirky guy who thinks he's found the girl of his dreams in a life-sized doll named Bianca. Lars is completely content with his artificial girlfriend but when he develops feelings for Margo an attractive co-worker Lars finds himself lost in a hilariously unique love triangle hoping to somehow discover the real meaning of true love. Offbeat and endearing this romantic comedy takes a fresh look at dating and relationships and dares to ask the question: What's so wrong with being happy?System Requirements:Special Features: Deleted Scene - "Bathtub" The Real Story of Lars and The Real Girl A Real Leading Lady Forced Trailers: Music Within Juno Savages Trailer Farm: Death at a Funeral BonnevilleFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY/ROMANTIC COMEDY Rating: PG-13 UPC: 883904103738 Manufacturer No: M110373To some, Lars and the Real Girl will play as comedy; to others, tragedy. Though Craig Gillespie (Mr. Woodcock) allows Lars Lindstrom (a mustachioed Ryan Gosling, miles away from Half Nelson) a happy ending, the road is far from smooth. This rumpled Midwesterner couldn't be more miserable. His brother, Gus (Paul Schneider, All the Real Girls), and sister-in-law, Karin (Emily Mortimer, Lovely and Amazing), fall over themselves to cheer him up, but Lars cannot be moved; he?s been like that since childhood. Then a porn-addicted co-worker hips him to the lifelike Real Doll. The next thing everyone knows, Lars has a new girlfriend named Bianca. She's from Brazil, she's shy, and she uses a wheelchair. She's also made of silicon. (Because Lars is a devout Christian, hanky-panky is out of the question.) Since he's finally emerging from his shell, his doctor, Dagmar (Patricia Clarkson), advises Gus and Karin to play along with the "delusion." Soon the whole town, including Margo (Kelli Garner), who harbors a not-so-secret crush on her officemate, gets in on the action, forcing Lars to rejoin the human race or crawl deeper into psychosis. Written by Six Feet Under's Nancy Oliver, Lars and the Real Girl is built around such a preposterous premise, it's hard to know whether to laugh or cry. Fortunately, the actors play it straight. Gosling does his best to make Lars sympathetic, but Schneider and Mortimer, fully convincing in their concern, are the true heart and soul of this odd little film. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Beyond Lars and the Real Girl
 More from Ryan Gosling |  Lars and the Real Girl Soundtrack |  More Comedies from MGM |
Stills from Lars and the Real Girl
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