Starring alongside a sex doll in Lars and the Real Girl made for some hilarious and touching moments says Emily Mortimer. lag: Paul Dale

mil} Mortimer is laughing. 'Bianea\ a \er_\ \uhtle aetrexx and ineredihl} modest. She sits quietl}. she \xaits. She doesn't paee around. thro\\ hi\\_\ iih or detnand things. .-\nd her perl'ormanee is ineredihl} Io\\ key Bianea l\ Mortimeik I)anixh/Bra/ilian eo-star in lilak) ne\\ eotned} lurx um! l/lt' Ix’t'u/ (irr/. Bianca div) happens to he a lite-\i/ed \e\ doll and the ohieet ol' all eonxuming |o\ e l‘rom introspeetix e oddhall l.ar\ l,ind\trom. pla} ed h_\ gil'ted eharaeter aetor l{_\an (ioxling. British aetrexx Mortimer is the protagonist\ hemuxed hut earing pregnant sister-in—lan. Karin. \\ho\e deepening friendship \\ ith |.ar\’ ruhher paramour pro\e\ to he one of the man} eharmx ol' this languid px} ehologieal eomed} drama. l-‘or Mortimer. a niee girl l'rom London. the daughter of reno\\ ned harrixter-turned—nmelixt .lolm Mortimer. this “as her lirxt e\perienee Pitt} ing UPPUSilL‘ tl \L‘\ doll. \\.;t\ \hL' dhh‘ lU hL‘L‘P

>>>>

[)IQMAMK

Joy Division

The Last Mistress

26 THE LIST '~1 .5 -_ 1‘

King Corn

a straight laee'.’ "I‘hat “as the \xeird part. Ihere “as a \er} respeetlul \ihe around her. l\’_\ in and the direetor |('raig (iliik‘\[‘it‘| tnade sure it was a no-go to take the piss otit ol Hianea. You had to he eool. But _\our natural instinet \\a\n't to do that an_\\\a_\. I’here‘x \otttelhitlg ahout [ill\ doll that makes _\ou look at _\our\ell.'

\Vritten h_\ Sit l't't'l I'm/('1' \erihe \ane} ()hx er and also \tarring l'S independent einenia queen I’atrieia (‘larkxoir /.tll'\ (ll/(l l/It' /\’t'ti/ (i/r/ is unusual hoth lor its setting a small Miduestern religious eonimunit} and the l’aet that redemption lor its quiet. trouhled eentral eharaeter eonies in the l'orni ol' a euxttunordered ladt doll. ‘lt'x an arehet}pal \tor) ahout \oniehod} dealing with l‘eelings ol loss and griel and loneliness. an ittahiltl) to eope with the world. l‘eelingx ol’ rejeetion and negleet. and aeting out.’ Mortimer \a}\. ‘;\nd then hon he e\entua|l} eoniex to terms \\llil tho\e l'eelings. It‘s a \tor} \\e‘re all lamiliar \xith lll our U\\ll li\e\ as \er| as in lietion. Hut \xhat makes this l'rexh and strange and dil’l'erent and hreathex ne\\ me into that old \tor} is the presenee ol' Hianea. She hreathex me into it e\en though she‘s an inanimate ereature sitting there amongst us.‘

Mortimer. \xhose pre\iou\ roles inelude turns in Seottixh l'eatures ion/re .lt/tmi and Hun lion/tie no“ li\e\ in \eu York \\ith her aetor hushand .'\le\\andro \ixola. She \a_\\. "l‘he ahxurdit} ol~ lil'e ean he \er} lunn} so the tone ol this “as sometimes hard to gauge. .\nd the lines new so hrilliant and olten hiiat‘iottsl} l'unn}. so _\ou had to resist the temptation to pla} the ioke.’

GFT. Sun 24 Feb. 7pm.

Redacted

The Spiderwick Chronicles

Eastern promise

Paul Dale previews the GFF‘s Eastern European films strand

California Dreamm'