A French woman mourning over the death of her husband three years prior is courted by a Swedish co-worker.
Oddly, though her recovery from grief would have made for a rich subject, the film edges away from it, preferring to present itself as a low-impact opposites-attract romcom.
At least Delicacy means us no harm, there’s a nice Girl With The Dragon Tattoo joke, and the leads are likeable.
The storytelling is a little muddled but Tautou brings all her elfine charm to bear. The real revelation, though, is François Damiens, who steals the show as her unlikely love interest.
As the Foenkinos brothers throw in silly fantasy sequences and gaudy rom-com set pieces, the overriding effect is one of misplaced style over substance.
An unashamed heartstrings tugger from the Foenkinos brothers, which may be too sweet and twee for some tastes, but Tautou's performance, and some nicely done silliness about the madness of love, will win many over by the end.
You might think that spousal bereavement and whimsical romantic comedy would make uneasy bedfellows, and you'd be somewhat right, as the debut from French duo Stéphane and David Foenkinos doesn't quite reconcile the divide between premise and tone.
Will love blossom? Will you care? What’s the point? The relationship is unconvincing, emotionally flat and - contrary to what the filmmakers clearly think - completely unfunny.
Takes far too long to say very little about life and love.
A cookie-cutter-kooky office romance.
Delicacy...might just be a quiet trend-bucker: despite some tonal wobbles, and a vague sense of deja vu, it's rather charming, and sometimes genuinely sad.
Insubstantial.
A tricky melange of levity and heartache.
A little inelegant in places, Delicacy has some magical moments, including a memorable scene in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower and true romantics should still fall under its spell.
Despite it being a romantic drama, this is a film likely to appeal less to women – I suspect they will be wondering how a 10 can fall for a four.
The result is tonally all over the place, and nowhere near as charming as it thinks it is.
The movie depends on the viewer believing Tautou is irresistible, and it's so slight that a breath of fresh air would blow it away.
Despite being underpinned by gnawing sadness, it's really a twinkly, playful Doris Day office comedy, if one that never explains what the characters actually do in their office.
It’s true that Delicacy won’t tax the brain or offer something new to this tired and loved-up genre, but its sincerity holds it above the sickliness of what Hollywood frequently churns out.
David and Stephane Foenkinos
Edinburgh Filmhouse, Edinburgh from Friday April 13, 2012, until Friday April 27, 2012. More info: www.filmhousecinema.com
General release. Check local listings for show times.
Dundee Contemporary Arts, Dundee from Monday April 30, 2012, until Thursday May 3, 2012. More info: www.dca.org.uk
macrobert, Stirling from Tuesday May 15, 2012, until Thursday May 17, 2012. More info: www.macrobert.org
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