When did Nia Vardalos get so thin? When did Richard Dreyfuss age enough to play the Walter Matthau-Jack Lemmon old-guy role? And is a cinematic trip to Greece and the welcome return of Vardalos enough to entice moviegoers to "My Life in Ruins"?

Those were the sort of questions running through my mind while watching this romantic comedy that would have been at home on TV. Its heart is in the right place even if its jokes are in the wrong decade.

Vardalos plays an American named Georgia, a classical history professor who moved to Athens to teach but instead finds herself working for Pangloss Tours. Georgia's tourists find her expeditions boring, prompting her boss to scold, "Nobody comes to Greece to learn."

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'My Life in Ruins'

2 1/2 stars = Average
Ratings explained

• Starring: Nia Vardalos, Richard Dreyfuss, Alexis Georgoulis.
• Rating: PG-13 for sexual content.
• Web site: www.foxsearchlight.com/mylifeinruins/

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Georgia, meanwhile, stereotypes her passengers, instantly identifying the tipsy Australians, obnoxious Americans, stuffy Brits, divorcees and inevitable "Mr. Funny," who this time is gray-haired Irv (Dreyfuss), who has a quip or a wisecrack for every occasion.

If that weren't enough, fellow tour guide Nico (Alistair McGowan) is adored by his patrons while Georgia is stuck with the bus with the malfunctioning air conditioner and hirsute driver Procopi "Poupi" Kakas (Alexis Georgoulis).

Once Georgia learns to appreciate the people as much as the Parthenon and realizes a modern Greek god is within her grasp, "My Life in Ruins" becomes "My Big Fat Greek Romance."

The spectacular real-life ruins and Vardalos are the best things about "My Life," even though she inexplicably favors impractical shoes with ankle straps and platforms while tromping around ancient landmarks or standing for hours on a bus. Georgoulis, whom the actress calls the "George Clooney of Greece," brings a fine fresh face to the romcom game usually populated by the same old suspects.

Directed by Donald Petrie, whose credits include "Mystic Pizza," "Grumpy Old Men" and "Miss Congeniality," and written by Mike Reiss, "My Life" seems predictable, not to mention dusty and dated. A joke about the driver's scatological name (Poupi Kakas) is just juvenile.

Still, it's wish fulfillment for women who would love to get their groove back in summery Greece with a man who says, "Your butt is too small." Yes, too small.