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Gallic rom-com I Do sees French comedian Alain Chabat pair up with Charlotte Gainsbourg in a take on the hoary old theme of the mismatched couple who discover feelings for one another. Successful perfumier Luis (Chabat) is being browbeaten by his huge, all-female family to marry. But he'd rather stay single, so he pays Emmanuelle (Gainsbourg) to pretend to be his fiancee, then jilt him at the altar. Predictably, this doesn't work - his family think she's the best thing since buttered croissants, and insist he win her back, forcing him to pay her again to pretend to be horrible so they go off her. Of course, by the time she succeeds in this, Luis has become rather fond of her himself...

The film's set-up is encouraging, introducing numerous charming and convincing characters with believable past histories. Luis' mother, steely-willed matriarch Genevieve, is particularly appealing, and everyone, without exception, is stylish and good-looking in that typical French way. But the comedic potential of these personalities is utterly squandered by the sitcom-level plot, which veers erratically between crude farce and mushy sentiment. Featherweight B-plots involving adoption and scent-blending are no more than distractions from the inevitable grindings of this dull main plot.

"ABSENT CHEMISTRY AND UNCONVINCING RELATIONSHIP"

Gainsbourg does a reasonable job, if a little over-reliant on being thin and pretty, but Chabat's performance becomes increasingly overplayed. It's a pity, as every now and then the wry character-comedy that I Do could have been peeks out, only to be kicked in the head by - say - a cringeworthy fake bondage scene. By an hour in, you're desperate for Luis and Emma to get together, absent chemistry and unconvincing relationship regardless, just so the film can waft to its obvious and uninspired ending. I do? I don't really think so.

I Do is out in the UK on 2nd November 2007.