IN cinemas now is Last Chance Harvey starring Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson in a very slight, whimsical, romantic comedy that I felt would have fared much better at the hands of the "rom com" king, Richard Curtis, writes Conor Nolan.

New Yorker Harvey Shine (Hoffman) is on the verge of losing his dead end job as a jingle writer.

Warned by his boss that he has just one more chance to deliver, Harvey goes to London for a weekend to attend his daughter's wedding but promises to be back on Monday morning to make an important meeting or else.

Harvey arrives in London only to learn his daughter has chosen to have her stepfather (James Brolin) give her away. Trying to hide his devastation, Harvey leaves the wedding before the reception in the hope of getting to the airport on time, but misses the plane at Heathrow. When he calls his boss to explain, Harvey is fired on the spot.

Drowning his sorrows at the bar, Harvey strikes up a conversation with Kate (Thompson), a sensitive, 40-something employee of the Office of National Statistics.

Kate, whose life is limited to work, the occasional humiliating blind date and endless phone calls from her smothering mother, is touched by Harvey, who finds himself energised by her intelligence and compassion.

The growing connection between the pair inspires both as they unexpectedly transform one another's lives.

The movie failed to raise many laughs from me, the two leads I feel would have benefited from a better script and all in all it was terribly pedestrian.

Rating: 2 stars

Cert: 12A

Website: www.lastchance harvey.co.uk

Duration: 92 mins