The best film-music moments are usually completely unexpected. A film like Greg Mottola's Superbad can
have a great vintage funk soundtrack, but the impact of any one song may be lessened a bit by its thematic nature. Lars and the Real Girl, on the other hand, contains one of the true surprise music
moments of the year, and it leaps out from the sweetly subdued wallpaper soundtrack of David Torn.
The moment happens during a party scene about a third of the way through the movie. Gillespie goes in for a tight close-up on Lars
Lindstrom (played by Ryan Gosling), who is standing with his eyes closed and swaying to "This Must Be The Place" by the Talking Heads. He's smiling and holding up his arms, as if dancing with a woman.
Home - is where I want to be,
But I guess I'm already there
I come home; she lifted up her wings
Guess this must be the place
This is an intimate and brilliant moment of character development because it shows how Lars is beginning to overcome his crippling shyness and social ineptitude. Though his eyes are closed, he's in a social setting and having a good time, in his own way. He brought Bianca—the life-sized doll he believes is his girlfriend—to the party, but he's dancing with some invisible other. Earlier in the film we learn that Lars' mother died when he was small, so perhaps his ghost-partner is her. Or perhaps we're witnessing a small but significant moment of healing in which Lars is moving on from phantoms and figurines to a girlfriend of his very own. She's incorporeal, sure, but for the first time the idea of her has formed in Lars' mind, and it makes for a really powerful, moving scene. The combination of longing and uncertainty in the Talking Heads song is the perfect choice for it.
By the way, you may think you're aware of what a great band the Talking Heads were, but if you haven't seen this live footage, your information is incomplete. Watch until the end.
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