Lars (Ryan Gosling) surprises his family and local community when he reveals his long distance internet girlfriend to be a lifelike sex doll. Realising his mental health is in decline everyone decides to go along with his delusion whilst he works through his issues. 

Lars And The Real Girl is a difficult film to explain. A film studio’s marketing department would probably sell it as a quirky romantic comedy. But whilst it begins as a whimsical comedy, it actually plays out as a much more dramatic and moving film about mental illness and love between a family and a community. Whilst it requires a large quotient of suspension of disbelief it actually comes together in a truly charming and magical manner. 

When we meet Lars he lives alone in the garage of his family home. His brother Gus (Paul Schneider) and sister-in-law Karin (Emily Mortimer) live in the main house and are expecting their first child. Karin is desperately concerned about Lars who has slowly withdrawn from social life but is unable to get him to join in no matter how many times she invites him over. 

Through social interactions at work, church and home we begin to see Lars’ hang ups with physical touch and societal norms. We also get to see how much he is loved by those around him. And then six weeks later Lars introduces Gus and Karin to his girlfriend Bianca. Lars believes her to be real, has conversations with her and wants to introduce her to his family and friends. Not knowing what to do Gus and Karin take him to see Dr. Dagmar Berman (Patricia Clarkson) who is both a general practitioner and a psychologist. Under the pretence that Bianca needs weekly care, Dr. Berman is able to spend time with Lars and ask him about the emotional issues that have led him to this. 

The fact that writer Nancy Oliver (Six Feet Under) and director Craig Gillespie (I, Tonya, Cruella and Dumb Money) manage to craft such a peculiar concept into a tear jerking and emotional uplifting feature is superb. 

Ryan Gosling’s performance is at the forefront of making Lars likeable and relatable. Lars’ delusion allows him to do things he was never able to do. It is his crutch for social interaction. And the scene where he relates his fears about Karin’s pregnancy to Dr. Berman and the grief he still has for the death of his mother in childbirth is heartbreaking. Paul Schneider manages to portray a brother who feels guilty and responsible for his brother’s state whilst delivering quite a large amount of the film’s humour. It is a tightrope walk performed expertly. Whilst Emily Mortimer and Patricia Clarkson deliver the caring and nurturing roles in the film. Patient, loving and supportive of both Lars and Gus. 

It is not just a film about mental health though. Perhaps the largest suspension of disbelief is not the existence of Bianca but the agreement by the community to also go along with the delusion and support Lars. It would be hard to believe this could ever happen but within the confines of this story it feels believable and is how the world perhaps should be. 

Lars And The Real Girl is a heartwarming and truly unique film.