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Real Community

I'm incredulous as to why I blew off Lars and the Real Girl for so long. Maybe it was the premise: lonely guy falls for sex doll. It sounds crass, but the movie is very sweet and Lars, played by Ryan Gosling, is ubersympathetic. Here's a character so emotionally crippled that human touch hurts him.






Even more amazing is that the community he lives in, some unidentified northern Midwestern town, goes along with his delusion, he treats Bianca, the doll, as if she were real, out of love for Lars. They create a convincing, though it would have been as tough as hell to actually live that out, beloved community. They allow Lars to work through his problems without judgment (for the most part) until he is ready to rejoin them. And yes, a church is part of the heart of this town. The writer and director create a world that is preposterous and real--and desirable! I think why can't I live in a town like that, better yet, what am I doing to create a town like that?

Oh yeah, Lars and the Real Girl is funny too.

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