Somewhere in the realms of small town America a quiet, shy man by the name of Lars lives. His home is in the garage of the family home, owned 50/50 with his brother, who lives in the main house with his pregnant wife. Lars is a friendly, helpful guy and he is well liked both at work and by ... Read review
Lars And The Real Girl stars Ryan Gosling as Lars Lindstrom a loveable introvert whose ... more
emotional baggage has kept him from fully embracing life. After years of lonely solityude Lars invites Bianca a friend he met on the internet to visit him in hi...
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Lars And The Real Girl stars Ryan Gosling as Lars Lindstrom, a loveable introvert whose ... more
emotional baggage has kept him from fully embracing life.After years of lonely solityude, Lars invites Bianca, a friend he met on the internet, to visit him in his home town. His family and friends are not only relieved but also excited to meet the girl who has brought Lars out of his shell! When Lars introduces Bianca to his brother Gus (paul Schneider) and his wife Karen (Emily Mortimer) they are stunned as Bianca turns out to be a life-size doll whom Lars is treating as a real person!After consulting with the family doctor, Lars' family and friends are instructed to along with his delusion - resulting in an emotional journey for Lars and the poeple around him!
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
Production Year: 2000 - Drama - Director: Giuseppe Tornatore - Original Language: Italian - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Monica Bellucci, Giuseppe Sulfaro, Luciano Federico, Matilde Piana
Advantages: Funny, sensitive and just so good Disadvantages: None at all
...man by the name of Lars lives. His home is in the garage of the family home, owned 50/50 with his brother, who lives in the main house with his pregnant wife. Lars is a friendly, helpful guy and he is well liked both at work and by the inhabitants of the town.
There is a young girl he works with who seems to quite like Lars but he cannot talk to her at all, ending up acting like a 12 year old around her. He likes that she talks to him ... ...away.
Lars is normal in most way, or he seems to be. He might be a little bit backward or maybe he just doesn’t like more than basic interaction with other people. Karin, his sister in law (Emily Mortimer) tries valiantly to get him to join them for breakfast, or dinner, or in fact any meal at all ,but her the only reward for her persistence is a ‘no thank you’.
Then Lars announces that he has a girlfriend, Bianca. This ... more
Somewhere in the realms of small town America a quiet, shy man by the name of Lars lives. His home is in the garage of the family home, owned 50/50 with his brother, who lives in the main house with his pregnant wife. Lars is a friendly, helpful guy and he is well liked both at work and by the inhabitants of the town.
There is a young girl he works with who seems to quite like Lars but he cannot talk to her at all, ending up acting like a 12 year old around her. He likes that she talks to him but seems to have no idea of how to respond, so he ignores her or just plain runs away.
Lars is normal in most way, or he seems to be. He might be a little bit backward or maybe he just doesn’t like more than basic interaction with other people. Karin, his sister in law (Emily Mortimer) tries valiantly to get him to join them for breakfast, or dinner, or in fact any meal at all ,but her the only reward for her persistence is a ‘no thank you’.
Then Lars announces that he has a girlfriend, Bianca. This is a big enough surprise to his brother in itself but when he introduces her the shockwaves rumble throughout the close knit community. You see he bought Bianca off the internet. She is a life size, realistic ‘doll’. To make matters worse it is readily apparent that Lars actually seems to think that she is real!
From then on Lars and The Real Girl becomes bright and breezy rom-com, just about, with some outright strange situations. It becomes the tale of a man trying to cope with life and people in the only way he can, by becoming like those around him in having a woman/partner in his life. With Bianca he doesn’t have to be scared or worry … she understands him and he can talk to her with ease. All the things he couldn’t bring himself to say to a real woman he can say to her. L&TRG is an indie film in every way, much like the indie break through film Juno it oozes indieness from start to finish. It has that unsullied feel to it that you so rarely get these days. A film that has been left alone by Hollywood PR and hype, ignored by the studios executives who want the film smoothed out and made like every other movie. I thought that no film would get close to Juno as the indie film of 2008, the successor to Little Miss Sunshine, but L&TRG gets very close, even surpassing it in places. In fact it joined Juno in getting a nomination for Best Screenplay at the 2008 Oscars. What gives it such an indie feel is not only the skewed storyline but also the way it is made. It has very few locations, has a small, quality cast, has the typical offbeat soundtrack and sadly had a very limited release in the cinemas. This is indie film making at its very best. It takes a well used and clichéd format (the romcom)and spins it 180 degrees on its head. Throwing in an idea that you would have thought would have scared off not only the big studios but all the smaller ones to… unless the Farrelly Brothers (Something About Mary, Stuck On You) were involved.
Ryan Gosling is a major star in the making. As Lars he shows once again that he is a class apart from most other young actors. He has done tortuous and heavy drama (Half Nelson), out and out thriller (Fracture) and romance (The Notebook) taking them all in his stride. He is a terrific actor who has the ability to make any film worth watching. Here he is assisted by Emily Mortimer and Patricia Clarkson (indie woman supreme) amongst others and the characters reactions to meeting Bianca for the first time are amongst the funniest things you will ever see in a movie.
Lars is a little gem of a movie that you should try your hardest to get to see and at least due to the wonders of DVD you can do that quite easily now. The only downside to it, as far as I can see, is that it might not be up to repeat viewing. A lot of the comedy comes from reactions, Lars’ to Bianca and the townsfolk to the couple and their relationship. Whether this would work if you saw it again I am not certain. I don’t think it would for me but on the other hand maybe I would notice more? Whatever the answer to this question is Lars & the Real girl is one of the most gentle, amusing and funniest movies around.
Advantages: Interesting characters, good enough performances, quite touching in parts Disadvantages: Wont appeal to everyone, may seem slow pace wise to some, also its not really a comedy as such
...- Story - Lars and the Real Girl tells the story of Lars' Lindstrom, a shy young man who keeps away from people and lives in a room by the garage near his brother and sister in laws house. His sister in law Karin keeps trying to get him to interact with them more but he chooses to shy away, until on day when he announces that he has a girlfriend, much to the delight of his brother and sister in law, that is until they discover that his girlfriend ... ...illness in order to get Lars to bring her in often so that she can secretly evaluate him. As he gets out more, the community become more aware of the 'couple'. Will they accept what he's doing? will Lars wake up to the fact that he's 'dating' an inanimate object? what will happen to him and what of his brother Gus, who finds this all very hard to take in? you'll have to watch the movie to find out, of course. - Thoughts/Opinions/Extra Info. - This ...
IzzyS 12.04.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Lars And The Real Girl (DVD)
Advantages: Interesting concept Disadvantages: Bland, dull, and not amusing
Lars Lindstrom (Ryan Gosling) is a weird guy, having in a shack next to his brother's house, he interacts little or not at all with anyone. At home he is awkward, at work he is annoying, and despite everyone's best efforts he simply does not seem to want to be part of this world. On the plus side Lars is a good man, a God fearing man who shows worship in church regally, and is generally appreciated in town as the one man not likely to fall off the ... ...Mortimer) desperately try to get Lars involved in things, but seem to fail unsuccessfully.
One day something catches Lars eye on the internet, and before long he is talking about a love interest called Bianca, who might be coming to stay for a while. A foreigner Bianca has strong religious beliefs and as a result would need to stay in Gus and Karin's house. The second issue is that she speaks no English, and is disabled. Thoughts of those around ...
sghawken 06.03.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Lars And The Real Girl (DVD)
Advantages: Well acted and directed drama Disadvantages: I can't think of any
Lars and the Real Girl is set in N America/Canada seemingly in a Scandinavian influenced town judging by the characters names. Lars is a young man with an uninspiring office job, who lives in the garage at the bottom of the garden of his brother and expectant sister in law. Having had a difficult childhood, he is rather reclusive and lacking in basic social and communication skills, reminding me slightly of someone with Aspergers as he often doesn't ... ...life size latex doll. However Lars seems to be in love with her and talks to her for hours. After seeking medical advice, their doctor advises them that Lars is delusional and that they should support Lars and play along, as he will not believe them if they tried to tell him Bianca wasn't real. Here follows the bittersweet and rather amusing journey of Lars in his first relationship and the reactions of those around him from the local community. ...
Essexgirl2006 02.03.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Lars And The Real Girl (DVD)
Advantages: Original Story Disadvantages: I'll think of one yet
...Girl_ is a 2007 film. Lars is a lonely, reclusive, young man who lives in the converted garage of his brother's house. He recoils from society and companionship and has to be tackled and pinned down by his sister-in-law, Karen,to convince him to come round for dinner. A co-worker Margo shows a strong interest in him but Lars ignores her as he does his other porn obsessed co-worker until one day he mentions sex dolls to Lars who is intrigued. He orders ... ...to the doctor who diagnoses Lars with a delusion, advising them to just humour him as it will eventually wear itself out. They start to pretend with him that the doll is real and the whole Community start to pull together. The priest pretends it's real and friends all come together for Lars who starts to become less of an introvert as a result. He also visits the doctor weekly with the doll, the doctor pretends to treat her but really tries to treat ...
Phelthew 15.06.2008 (16.06.2008)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Lars And The Real Girl (DVD)
Advantages: Story.Performances Disadvantages: Idea is a bit silly.Might appear to be boring for a few
...Mortimer and Paul Schneider. Lars is an introverted guy who decides to move to the garage since his brother and sister-in-law moved in. He keeps to himself,goes to work where he hardly speaks to anyone and comes back home but stays away from socialising from his brother Gus(Paul Schneider) and his wife Karin(Emily Mortimer). They become happy when Lars suddenly comes to them and announces he has his girlfriend coming over dinner. The surprise is ... ...great extent. The fact that Lars is delusional is not overdone,nor is it overdramatic. You will actually be surprised at how the film shapes up,how things fall into place and you will be amazed how you are actually following what is going on screen. There is a whole lot of other emotions here, Gus and Karin's concern for Lars is well portrayed. The characters are well developed and very realistic. The approach is subtle yet heartwarming. The objective ...
aadnan613 10.12.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Lars And The Real Girl (DVD)
Contains mental illness theme and moderate sex references
Video Category
Feature Film
Plot
Lars only leaves the garage where he lives when his older brother Gus and loving sister-in-law Karin drag him to their house next door for dinner. Lars doesn't take well to questioning, so the disturbing level of his isolation is never openly discussed. It's only when he announces he has a girlfriend in the form of an anatomically correct doll he purchased via the internet that everyone must admit his precarious mental state. No one quite knows how to help Lars, so they play along, careful not to do anything that might push him or Bianca (his plastic fiancée) over the edge.
Release details
DVD Region
DVD
Studio(s)
20TH CENTURY FOX HOME ENTERTAINMENT; CINRAM LOGISTICS, VERVE PICTURES
Languages
Main Language
English
Technical information
Aspect Ratio
16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
Sound
Dolby Digital 5.1
Special Features
Deleted scene, Behind the Scenes featurette, A Real Leading Lady featurette, Trailers
Professional reviews
Review
A strangely affecting romance with real heart - and another sign that Gosling is one of the best young actors around (Empire, 29/02/2008)
DVD Description
As the title character, Ryan Gosling is a strange but likeable young man who manages to keep down a job but keeps mostly to himself. He only leaves the garage where he lives when his older brother Gus (Paul Schneider) and loving sister-in-law Karin (Emily Mortimer) drag him to their house next door for dinner. Lars doesn't take well to questioning, so the disturbing level of his isolation is never openly discussed. It's only when he announces he has a girlfriend in the form of an anatomically correct doll he purchased via the internet that everyone must admit his precarious mental state. No one quite knows how to help Lars, so they play along, careful not to do anything that might push him or Bianca (his plastic fiancée) over the edge. The results are touching efforts on the part of all those who love him to help Lars through what his psychologist (Patricia Clarkson) assures them may be only a stage. Kelli Garner shines as Margo, the real, live girl who Lars seems incapable of seeing. Despite being ignored, Margo hangs in there, hopeful Lars will come around to sanity and to her. Craig Gillespie's LARS AND THE REAL GIRL is a sweet love story and a film which deals with mental illness in surprisingly subtle ways. With a formula that could easily have manipulated for cheap laughs, the film achieves quirky humour in parts but mostly touching observations about the nature of delusions themselves. The film's talented cast gathers around Lars, a sensitive character who the film respects and who Gosling (THE NOTEBOOK, HALF NELSON) brings fully to life.
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