Published in Flaunt Magazine 2008
In a small community, a young man pushes a wheelchair in which rests the upright, silicon body of a sex doll named Bianca. As the title character, Gosling portrays a delusional and socially awkward milquetoast, who channels his loneliness and ameliorates his emotional paralysis with the silent words of a synthetic woman. As Lars slowly breaks from his chrysalis of introversion, Gosling’s performance—made affecting more because of his silences that his words—emerges as the keystone that holds the film together. The plot could have easily been led into the realm of unbelievability. But with each constrained gesture, overactive blink, and nervous stutter, you fall headfirst into the world that Lars built.
“We’re all good and bad people, so I’m interested in characters that have a light and dark side. Bianca is [Lar’s] way to light a match into his abyss. He has a lot of love and nowhere to put it.” –Ryan Gosling.