Movies: Lars and the Real Girl

Ryan Gosling, to his credit, refuses to by typecast as a Hollywood heartthrob. His latest performance is also one of his best - his turn as the shy Lars Lindstrom, protagonist of "Lars and the Real Girl":



Directed by Craig Gillespie, LatRG is a fairly in-depth look at the life of one lonely man, and how that loneliness is broken by a woman named Bianca. Unfortunately, Bianca is a sex doll, but the film never portrays Lars' relationship as anything less than sympathetic. You might feel sorry for Lars, you might laugh at him, but you'll never be creeped out (which, given the subject matter, would have been easy). Gosling does a great job here, with a performance that teeters on the brink of being a bit too saccharine without ever quite going over.

While I liked the premise (the Oscar-nominated screenplay was penned by "Six Feet Under" alum Nancy Oliver), the movie does drag a little bit. After all, Lars' relationship with Bianca is mostly one-sided, aside from an entertaining twist later on in the film that isn't carried out to its fullest. The plot itself isn't terribly interesting, which does limit watchability on repeat viewings. But if there has been a better movie made about a guy and his sex doll, I don't know it.

Rating: 7/10