MUST LOVE DOGS — ** 1/2 — Diane Lane, John Cusack, Dermot Mulroney; rated PG-13 (vulgarity, profanity, brief sex, slapstick violence).

Though it's based on Claire Cook's best-selling novel, "Must Love Dogs" feels like something screenwriter/director Gary David Goldberg would create — a sitcom, along the lines of his two big TV successes, "Family Ties" and "Spin City."

"Must Love Dogs" is predictable and has its forced and contrived moments. But it works all right as sort of cinematic comfort food. And as such, it's a nice little antidote to all the special effects-heavy, action-driven summer movies that are currently cluttering the multiplexes.

Much of the movie's appeal also has to do with its cast. Diane Lane stars as Sarah Nolan, a recently divorced, thirtysomething schoolteacher whose meddling sister (Elizabeth Perkins) goes so far as to place an online personal ad for her — describing her as both "voluptuous" and an animal lover.

Unfortunately, things don't go quite as planned — especially when she goes to meet a blind Internet date and it turns out to be her widowed father (played with relish by Christopher Plummer).

Of her many respondents, however, she finds boat-builder Jake Anderson (John Cusack) the most intriguing.

Unfortunately, Jake has the annoying habit of speaking his mind, and he often sticks his foot in his mouth. He also comes across as too intense — his idea of romance is something along the lines of "Dr. Zhivago" — which scares Sarah a bit.

Further complicating things is Sarah's attraction to Bob Connor (Dermot Mulroney), the father of one of her students — who may be an unrepentant womanizer, which isn't exactly what she wants or needs, either.

That latter subplot is unneeded and acts as more of a contrivance to keep Lane's and Cusack's characters apart.

But some of the dialogue does sparkle, and there are a couple of laugh-out-loud moments (especially the aforementioned sequence with Plummer's character). And the two leads have believable chemistry.

Still, you kind of wish Cusack had more to do; his character goes missing for far too long. The same goes for Stockard Channing, who plays one of the women in an aging "harem" acquired by Plummer's character.

"Must Love Dogs" is rated PG-13 for some sexually suggestive humor and references, scattered use of profanity, some brief sexual contact, and some slapstick violence (involving children). Running time: 98 minutes.

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E-mail: jeff@desnews.com