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This film has all of the makings for a laugh-out-loud comedy -- but it's just not that kind of film. It's a lot smarter and deeper than what it appears to be.
Not everyone is going to get this film. Some folks are going to go in with the wrong idea of what it's all about.
"Lars and the Real Girl" is about a lonely man who orders a sex doll as his girlfriend -- not for sex -- but for companionship. While shocking at first, Bianca is really a tool for Lars to introduce himself to the world that he has mostly been withdrawn from.
Yes, this film is funny at times -- especially right after Bianca arrives onto the seen (via UPS). The strangeness and uncomfortability of it all is quite humorous. While most of the humor is due to Bianca herself, the silliness begins to wear off as the film digs deeper into the reasons behind Bianca's arrival.
Lars' relationship with Bianca is bizarre, but exists because he struggles with some emotional issues. The one thing that actually came along with Bianca was normality in Lars. He became social, confident, and started to simply feel for the first time in a long time. Bianca was like his security blanket more than anything else. He needed her so he could be more normal. Everyone (sans his brother's wife) failed to notice that Lars was not exactly 'normal' before Bianca came out of her box.
The reaction from the town is what really makes this movie. If how they treated the situation were actually plausable in the real world, it certainly could only happen in a small, close-knit down like the one Lars lived in. The way Bianca became part of the community was quite funny, but more heartwarming than anything else.
Personally, I think this particular aspect of the film is what will make it or break it for people. If you allow yourself to buy into the fact that the town is there to embrace Lars and his situation, you're likely going to enjoy this film. If you can't, you'll probably find it to be silly and unrealistic. However, no one ever claimed it to a docudrama.
"Lars and the Real Girl" is the kind of film you feel inspired to go and tell other people about because it's likely that they've never heard of it. It's just so different than anything else. I feel that it's pretty hard to walk out of this movie not feeling good about it all (as long as you walked into it not expecting a Farley Brothers film).
In short, this is just a really good movie.
9/10
