Love Object (2004)

Oddball look at the psychology of one seriously lonely dude and the sway his sex doll (!) has over his life. The director wisely recognizes the inherent silliness of the concept and is willing to play with it (the scene where the sex doll arrives by mail turns into a genial farce), and the low-key performances help keep the film on track when it tilts over into full-on horror mode. Making the protagonist a writer of instruction manuals was a clever idea, too -- not only does it lend credence to the film's logic-vs.-emotion struggle, but it also makes for a fine running gag and it adds a bit of believability to a couple of the narrative's more far-fetched elements. Falters near the end with a cheap reversal-of-expectations ending (I agree that the film needs a downbeat conclusion, but I don't know about this downbeat conclusion...), but worth a look anyway; would probably make a great double bill with May.

Grade: B