my brief thoughts on.... 'Lars and the Real Girl'

i've only seen one other movie about a guy that falls in love with a 'love' doll.... but it was a bit of a horror movie.... 'Lars and the Real Girl' is more of a traditional love story, with an odd twist.... the twist is never hidden.... he is in love with a 'real doll', which do exist.... http://www.realdoll.com/ ....the strange thing about this movie is that it's not at all perverse or twisted, it's actually a very sweet little movie.... and Ryan Gosling plays Lars in such an unassuming and naive way that you forget he's acting.... and all of the people around him all care about his so much that they begin to play along with his fantasy and soon you almost forget it's a doll he loves.... for that, i give a lot of credit to the screenwriter and the director.... between the words on the page and the ability to get the actors to be believable, it sells a false reality for a brief period that you want to be a part of.... the town where he lives, the people he knows, his family, his friends.... it's all so warm and inviting, it's like going home again for the first time....

Lars obviously has some social problems.... with friends, co-workers, and even his family.... he lives alone in the garage out back of his brother's home.... he barely visits his brother's family even though they're 50 feet away from him.... he soon discovers the Real Doll website and orders a doll.... once she's arrived, Lars begins to come out of his shell.... he almost immediately invites himself and his new girl over to dinner.... from there, he begins to take her all around town and instead of the town finding him to be a lunatic, they embrace his unorthodox love and welcome the doll into their lives.... she's included so much in their lives that soon she takes on a life of her own.... no, she doesn't come alive, but she is treated like she is.... she has a job, her own friends, etc.... i won't spoil the big finish to the movie.... (well, i don't want to oversell it.... let's just say it has an end.).... but i think this movie deserves an audience even if you have to rent it from Netflix, which you do.
i gave it 3 out of 5 stars.... and i wouldn't be opposed to a second viewing, if for nothing else but to go back to the little town where he lives to visit for a while.... i should mention the great co-stars Patricia Clarkson and Emily Mortimer.... they're wonderful.... i could see this one ending up in my DVD collection and probably growing on me with repeated viewings.... it may not be the last 'Real Doll' movie that we see made.... (and not just in porn).... i have a feeling they'll pop up again.... who knows, maybe someone will make a whole movie about a town full of 'Real Dolls' who order a human and one of them falls in love with the human.... eh....? eh....? maybe not.

if you like this, check out: 'Love Object' (it's the kind of scary version)