Le Divorce

What's this - the guv'nors of stuffy costume dramas, Merchant and Ivory, doing a romantic comedy? Sadly the results are every bit as tiresome as you might expect for the veteran, largely period, filmmakers have about as much understanding of the dynamics and mechanics of the comedic medium as Keanu Reeves has about grown-up acting.

The plot follows not-so-gay divorcee Roxanne de Persand (Naomi Watts), an American poet living in Paris with her artist husband (Melvil Poupaud) and daughter. Shortly after her sister, Isabel (Kate Hudson) arrives in the capital for an extended break, Roxanne's hubby splits, leaving her six months pregnant with their second child. With her divorce loaming and no pre-nup, Roxanne and her family worry that they may lose a family heirloom in the settlement. Meanwhile, Isabel has embraced the stereotypical values of the French with a serious make-over and takes a lover in the shape of a distant in-law (Thierry Lhermitte). Cue comic mayhem. In theory, anyway.

Despite the presence of a talented diverse cast and a potentially absorbing comedic premise (cross cultural clashes are always a rich source of amusement), there's little or nothing to recommend Le Divorce. Painfully boring, the film moves with precious little imagination or gusto, it neatly sidesteps anything that could be confused with humour or intrigue. As dull as a wet Tuesday in early January, Ivory's directions lacks zest while his characters are bizarrely uneven, mistaking self-awareness for wit.