Lars and the Real Girl
Okay, if you saw the previews for "Lars and the Real Girl" you may have been thinking "What the heck?" because I was. A movie about a man who takes his blow up doll to dinner parties trying to pass her off as his new girlfriend...hmmm...what will Hollywood think up next?
However, I heard a couple of good reviews so I thought I'd give the movie a chance and I was pleasantly surprised at what a good movie it was. Far from being over the top, the scenes went from being subtly sad to ingeniously hilarious.
The movie starts out being about a lonely guy who has severe social anxiety and orders a "design your own girl" off the internet, who he then introduces to his brother and sister in law as his missionary girlfriend. A doctor describes him as dillusional and tells his family they must play along. In one interesting scene the family meets with the church elders and asks them to also play along with Lars and his dillusions. They sit around and argue about the idea of a lifesize doll sitting in church on Sunday and how kids these days have no restraint, but then one man speaks up and says, "Well now, it all comes down to one very important question, what would Jesus do?" I won't spoil the next part for you.
The characters in the story are real and identifiable and midway through the movie you'll see that the story is just as much about Lars' friends and family as it is about him, maybe more so. At one point I took a mental step back realizing how attached I'd become to the character Bianca (again you'll have to watch it to see who she is).
Lars and the Real Girl gives a thoughtful look into the lives of people who are different and celebrates how we can come together as a community to support and love each other.
It's out on DVD and rated PG-13 for obvious adult content.
-Jewel
However, I heard a couple of good reviews so I thought I'd give the movie a chance and I was pleasantly surprised at what a good movie it was. Far from being over the top, the scenes went from being subtly sad to ingeniously hilarious.
The movie starts out being about a lonely guy who has severe social anxiety and orders a "design your own girl" off the internet, who he then introduces to his brother and sister in law as his missionary girlfriend. A doctor describes him as dillusional and tells his family they must play along. In one interesting scene the family meets with the church elders and asks them to also play along with Lars and his dillusions. They sit around and argue about the idea of a lifesize doll sitting in church on Sunday and how kids these days have no restraint, but then one man speaks up and says, "Well now, it all comes down to one very important question, what would Jesus do?" I won't spoil the next part for you.
The characters in the story are real and identifiable and midway through the movie you'll see that the story is just as much about Lars' friends and family as it is about him, maybe more so. At one point I took a mental step back realizing how attached I'd become to the character Bianca (again you'll have to watch it to see who she is).
Lars and the Real Girl gives a thoughtful look into the lives of people who are different and celebrates how we can come together as a community to support and love each other.
It's out on DVD and rated PG-13 for obvious adult content.
-Jewel
Jewel, I wanted to say that I enjoyed Lars and the Real Girl, Eddie really thought it was good.
As I think back, I realize that I appreciated as you did, the friends response to Bianca in their choice to love in deed a troubled person. But you can't help but wonder how giving life to Bianca outside of Lars' time with her effected them. It was surely a way to teach Lars something about life and women and relationships.
Eddie saw Bianca as a way for Lars to work out his own problems and be healed.
Okay, you and Eddie are right, it was a really good film. In fact I told him that I didn't think we wanted it in our every growing library, maybe I was wrong.
Reply to this