Fitting perfectly into the French stereotype, the characters in "Shall We Kiss?" (Un baiser s'il vous plait) are obsessed with l'amour. The problem is, they don't seem to know anything about it.

The story begins in the streets of Nantes one afternoon, when beautiful Parisian Emilie (Julie Gayet) meets handsome stranger Gabriel (Michael Cohen), who offers to give her a lift when she has trouble finding a taxi. One quiet car ride, a few furtive glances and several coy smiles later, an attraction develops, and the two spend the night together over dinner and drinks.

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'Shall We Kiss?'

2 1/2 stars = Average
Ratings explained

• Starring: Julie Gayet, Michael Cohen, Virginie Ledoyen, Emmanauel Mouret.
• Rating: Not rated but contains partial nudity. In French with English subtitles.
• Web site: www.shallwekiss.com

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At the end of the evening, Gabriel leans in to kiss Emilie, but she retreats. They both admit to being in committed relationships, but Gabriel promises that if they kiss, it will be of no consequence.

"Non," Emilie insists, because a kiss can lead to unexpected results, and she explains by telling him a cautionary story of a couple she knew.

That's where Judith (Virginie Ledoyen), a married woman, and Nicolas, her best friend, played by director Emmanuel Mouret, come in. After his relationship of two years comes to an end, Nicolas confesses to Judith that he is suffering from a "lack of physical affection." Judith suggests he see a prostitute, but he says he already tried, and the woman's rule against kissing turned him off. Eventually, he asks Judith if she'd do him the favor of sleeping with him to solve his dilemma.

What's a best friend to do? Judith obliges, and, several physical encounters later, the two realize they are falling in love. But Judith's oblivious husband, Claudio (Stefano Accorsi), is caught in the middle, as she and Nicolas must decide how to break the news of the affair to him.

"Shall We Kiss?" begins as a lighthearted romantic comedy, and it's somewhat successful. The characters' take on sex is so naive it's hilarious. In the awkward yet entertaining scene before Nicolas and Judith do the actual deed, Nicolas takes a polite and dispassionate approach to foreplay, asking Judith, "May I touch here?" before every move.

After reluctantly admitting they enjoyed sleeping with one another, the two try to cure themselves out of lust. Between long kisses, they ridiculously try to interpret their physical needs and emotions before finally admitting to being in love. Unfortunately, that's where the humor fizzles, and the film evolves into a prolonged melodrama.

While Ledoyen and Mouret both shine as confused, panic-stricken best friends, Mouret would have done well to better develop his characters. Judith and Nicolas are obviously smart people. But that's why it's so surprising to find that they are stupid enough to get themselves into such a mess to begin with.

Their overly analytical approach to sex and love starts off as comedic but quickly becomes a nuisance. In the end, the film leaves us with a message that should have been obvious from the very beginning -- without all the incessant talking.