Lars and the Real Girl
(PG) Fox DVD

Don’t be deterred by an improbable-sounding plot. This gentle, sweet-natured film is brimming with messages about community, compassion and basic human kindness, and would make an excellent discussion point for a Bible study or fellowship group.

Lars (Ryan Gosling) is a shy, troubled man living in a small town in the American Midwest.

Seeking companionship, he buys a custom-designed female doll on the internet, and introduces her to his brother and sister-in-law. To Lars, she’s a real person, and he develops a whole personality and life history for her. On the advice of the family doctor, his relatives play along.

Soon, the whole town has come to the party and Bianca becomes part of the community, taking on a part-time job, attending church and volunteering at the children’s hospital and local school.

Sounds tacky or far-fetched? Strangely, the film is so nicely paced and the performances so good that it works — to the point where Bianca does start to seem like a “real girl”.

The character of Dagmar Berman (Patricia Clarkson), the family doctor, is a particular delight. She is never condescending to Lars, but patiently and compassionately listens to him, even confides in him.

Offbeat in an endearing rather than an irritating way, the film deals very sensitively with Lars’ mental state and never succumbs to any of the cheap, crude gags you might expect from a film whose female lead is a fully-formed, life-size doll.

Emma Halgren