Avalon

Lars and The Real Girl

Saturday, October 27, 2007

It's been some time since a movie has surprised me. When my friend abruptly called me up to watch this movie whose title I have not even heard of, I had half a mind to reject him. (He likes to watch shows like "Scary Movie", "Balls of Fury" and the likes of those... not my cup of tea)

But I was pleasantly surprised and very thankful I didn't waste my 8 dollars after the 2 hours passed. The story is basically about a lonely, delusional young man who doesn't enjoy much interaction with people, even his brother and sister-in-law even though they try quite hard (the sister-in-law especially) to get him over for breakfast and such and to find a way into his heart. But he was always shutting them out of his house and himself, preferring to lessen contact with people, or to get into a relationship.

So when he suddenly appeared in his brother's doorstep one day revealing news that he has a female guest over at his house and that he would like to request having her stay at his house instead, (they live just opposite each other) the couple were more than delighted at the news, only for the moment. Because to their utmost shock, the female 'guest' was a sex doll the man had ordered and the worst thing is, the man is talking to her and treating her like a human, and before long displayed such affections that only showed that he had fallen in love with it/her, telling everyone in town that she's his girlfriend.

The townfolk were obviously flabbergusted at first, but they all came to a common consensus to help the man overcome his delusion, and they actually started treating the doll like a real girl, whether it's bathing her, bringing her to church, for hair trimming sessions and all. It's a bit touching but you can't help laughing at times so the laughter sort of snuffs out the element of warmth.

There are cute moments, when the man helped his female colleague (who secretly likes him) do CPR on her supposedly dead teddy bear and when the man brought the doll to his childhood haunt and started pouring out childhood memories to her...

The idea is very original and although the movie is filled with laughs, it doesn't forget to display its powerful emotions at pivotal points and brings out the relationships between the man and his brother, a doctor who becomes his friend and confidante, the town folk, and his love- the doll.

And hopefully you will learn to appreciate your friends and family more after this show. The wrong lesson will be to start buying a doll from ebay or to start panicking over your Tigger's unconsciousness ("Why are you not talking to me?!") and to call for an ambulance...

Envoy of the Stars @ 1:54 AM
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