Lars and the Real Girl | 
 enlarge | Director: Craig Gillespie
Actors: Patricia Clarkson, Liisa Repo-martell, Karen Robinson, Doug Lennox, Nicky Guadagni
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
Category: DVD
List Price: $19.98
Buy Used: $5.05
You Save: $14.93 (75%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  120 reviews
Sales Rank: 663
Format: Ac-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, Dvd-video, Subtitled, Widescreen, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled), French (Dubbed), Spanish (Dubbed)
Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 107
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.1
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.6
MPN: MGMDM110373D
UPC: 883904103738
EAN: 0883904103738
ASIN: B0014D5RBE
Theatrical Release Date: 2007
Release Date: April 15, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Studio: Tcfhe/mgm Release Date: 01/13/2009 Run time: 106 minutes Rating: Pg13
Amazon.com
To 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
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| Customer Reviews: Read 115 more reviews...
 Interesting November 23, 2008
This movie I thought was a comedy is actually something special, it is funny at times but its warm and shows how people can come together and show their love and support for a person in their community.
 Emotionally packed November 22, 2008
I have long hesitated to see this movie because its previews just seemed silly. Advertised as a comedy, I was not in rush to see a movie about a midwestern guy in love with a doll. But then I got the courage and I just LOVED this movie from start to finish. It is emotionally packed story about a young man who suddenly in the most unexpected way tries to resolve his deep emotional issues. There were moments in the film that were funny, but the story is really about one man's subconscious mind trying to heal itself after decades of suppression. What was very moving is that in this small town with very traditional people he finds the best support system ever to work out his issues. And the way that the story unravels is just one reason more for anyone to really see and enjoy this movie. The entire cast on this film was fantastic. But Ryan Gosling's performance of the main character Lars is mesmerizing. When is this actor going to get an Oscar? He is absolutely amazing. You must see this movie. It will leave a lasting effect on you.
A Modern Day "Harvey" November 15, 2008
A perfect little gem.
From the outside it looks like the story of a man and a sex doll. WRONG! It is a touching story of a young man's crisis and the fantastical efforts a small town goes to in order to help him.
It is simple and beautiful.
If Frank Capra directed a movie about a love doll November 13, 2008
This is my other favorite film of 2007 (alongside Juno). Knowing that, when I tell you this film's premise you will think I've officially gone off the deep end.
Lars is about a man who buys a "love doll" online and actually believes that she's a real woman. Got your attention? Good. Because even though that's the one-sentence description of the movie, it doesn't even begin to cover all that this movie is really about.
Lars (Oscar nominee Ryan Gosling doing a terrific job) is a nice guy and is extremely shy. He also has severe emotional problems. He finds it physically painful to be touched by others and ignores both their repeated hints that he find a girl and the subtle advances of a gangly coworker (Kelli Garner). Although he works at his anonymous computer job each day and faithfully attends church, no one is aware of just how serious his condition has become in the past few months. His pregnant sister-in-law, Karin (Emily Mortimer, who actually drives the film), has suspicions, however, and since Lars lives in the converted garage behind their house, keeps unsuccessfully inviting him to have dinner with her and his brother, Gus (Paul Schneider). In desperation, she finally tackles him in the driveway one night and insists he eat the salmon she's made. Later, Gus shrugs his brother's quirks off as "fine."
**POSSIBLE SPOILERS** (Although most is in the trailers)
A shipping crate arrives one day while Lars is at work and Karin casually calls Lars at work notify him. Lars speeds home to open it and that evening announces that he has a lady friend he's met online and that he'd like to bring her to dinner that night. Ecstatic that he's not only reaching out to them but has found romance, Karin and Gus spruce the house up and anxiously await the arrival of Lars' friend. Their hopes are dashed, however, when they meet Bianca - a life-sized, fully-articulated, silicone pleasure doll. Lars explains that Bianca can't walk because she is paraplegic and can't speak English because she's a Brazilian missionary. Since Lars and Bianca are devout Christians and they don't want to give the impression of impropriety, he asks Gus and Karin if Bianca can stay in their house while she's in America.
Terrified that Lars is psychotic, Karin and Gus devise a ruse to get Lars help. They suggest a routine examination for Bianca by their small town's lone physician - who doubles as psychologist. After interacting with Lars while she "diagnoses" Bianca, the doctor (Oscar nominee Patricia Clarkson in a pitch-perfect performance) suggests to the couple that Lars has not had a complete break. He is delusional, however, and there must be some reason why his mind created the delusion to protect him. She recommends strongly that they humor him until she can find out why. Although Gus has to be strong-armed at first, they eventually play along and soon the entire community follows suit in an effort to help Lars get better.
**END SPOILERS**
What follows is a thoughtful, charming, moving, and frequently understated Capraesque comedy that seldom goes for the cheap laugh. It gently reminds us not only of the lengths any of us may go to when we're hurting enough but also of what a family, a church, and a community can do for someone else in pain. There are a few scenes that stretch credulity even for a tale this fanciful but, generally speaking, if you're willing to buy into the premise, it can take you to a pretty nice place.
Lars! October 27, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
There are so many movies I won't see. We need a lot more like this.
It's not mean-spirited, a huge plus. I'm not necessarily big on "feel-good" movies (and don't care about happy endings), but I want movies that, vis-a-vis their own reality, treat their characters with dignity.
The movie plays in a real and natural way. People aren't tossing off unrealistic "one-liners" and trying so hard to be memorable and cool, as if the scriptwriter(s) were striving for quotes to make some list for posterity. The people act real and natural; the situations are not real and natural but the cast makes them believable.
And I finally got to see Ryan Gosling in a movie, and now I see why "everyone's raving." I liked this entire cast, and hate to single anyone out, but I do love Patricia Clarkson's presence in films; I sometimes think she needs to be in every film!, even if she just pops in at the credits and waves to the audience so they know she is still around. :D
I got a sense of the actors here, all the cast, that -- if you met them in person, in reality -- they would be *real, kind people* who might not necessarily want to deal with crowds and autographs, but who would respond with class. The actors themselves seem like real and good people, and it makes their characters seem real.
This movie was fun! Lots of scenes that make it feel undecided whether you should laugh or cry. And as one reviewer pointed out, this movie works REALLY well on the "meta-level," if you take it in an allegorical way.
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