the church geek

You might ask why on earth would someone want to watch a movie about a guy and his “girlfriend” who just so happens to be an anatomically correct mail order doll? That certainly can’t be anything but trouble.

Well, in this case it’s not. In fact, Lars and the Real Girl just happens to be one of the smartest, most moving, and spiritually significant films I’ve seen in a long time.

Lars is a good but painfully awkward and shy man. The limit of his social activity is his office job, attending church on Sunday morning, and being dragged off to dinner by his caring but overly pushy sister-in-law. Lars keeps to himself in a room off the side of the family garage while his brother and sister-in-law have moved into the home not long after the death of their father.

One day a large package arrives for Lars, and later that evening he shows up at the door of his brother’s home introducing his new girlfriend, Bianca, whom he says has arrived after serving as a missionary in Brazil.

But of course she is nothing more than a full sized life like doll. His brother and sister-in-law think he’s gone nuts but eventually decide to heed the advice of the family doctor and to play along with Lars’ delusion until he no longer needs it.

What unfolds is an incredibly moving modern parable of the power of love and community, as first the church and then the rest of the town make the choice to wrap their arms around Lars and to accept his new friend, Bianca, as one of them.

Their acceptance helps Lars push past the many barriers that have kept him trapped for years. It also helps him to take note of his office co-worker and fellow church member, Margo, the ‘real girl’ who really loves and cares for him.

There is much to recommend about this movie and I give it 9 out of 10 stars.

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