By Evan Ferstenfeld

Now that romantic comedy trailers boast about how many tears they will make you leak as if they were shilling for Schwarzenegger’s latest blood-letting actioneer (the tagline for Love, Actually christened itself "The ULTIMATE Romantic Comedy," apparently ending a century of heated debate on the subject), where does In Her Shoes stack up hormonally in the suddenly ultra-competitive chick flick sweepstakes? Directed deftly by Curtis Hanson, a man who specializes in disguising touchy-feely cinematic journeys by plunking a testosterone-approved male at the helm of his emotional roller-coasters (Michael Douglas in Wonder Boys, Eminem in 8 Mile), In Her Shoes reverses the amount of screen time of his film's genders to complete Hanson's brilliantly triumphant conversion of the brute male psyche, from his Alpha Male smoking-gun drama (1997's L.A. Confidential) to simply baby's momma drama.

Unlike a smattering of other estrogen-fests that place a steel barricade out front with a "Ladies Only" sign to assure no male presence will interrupt the cinematic pocketbook party (Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, Waiting to Exhale), In Her Shoes spins the gender-friendly tale of two sisters on opposite ends of the compatibility lifestyle spectrum who need drastic changes of pace in lives screaming towards unfavorable endings in their current trajectories. Maggie Feller (Cameron Diaz, finally putting to ironic use some of her fluff-piece performance tendencies she has drifted through in the last few years) is a female temptress who worships famous people for being famous, who can set invisible traps to seduce any guy she might fancy for the evening. Her sister Rose (Toni Collette looking nearly unrecognizable in a nicely understated performance) buys scads of provocative footwear only to pile them in the back of her closet and would have to statistically pinpoint who her Prince Charming would be before even thinking of reeling him in. Kudos go to screenwriter Susannah Grant for not morphing author Jennifer Weiner’s everyday but not stereotypical characters into the umpteenth rendition of a familial Odd Couple, instead injecting into all involved a relatable and realistic way about every goofy joke and awkward silence.

In fact, the key description to properly fit In Her Shoes's size is springy, eager humbleness. Where scores of modern romantic comedies attempt to jerk every last tear from the depths of a woman's heart like estrogen oil derricks, In Her Shoes glides along at a leisurely two plus hours, letting its jokes and main themes take their time to soak in, showing how sometimes changes come and feelings heal through the passage of time alone. The film also does not shy away from potentially creep-out subjects such as how senior citizens are as hot to trot with each other as their MTV2-infused grandkids.

Nearly every classy chick flick of the past decade has contained a member of the older Hollywood order coming in and trying their damndest to disperse their seasoned elegance and charm on the bawdy proceedings. As the sister's long-lost grandmother, Shirley MacLaine gracefully and quietly superglues the film's many plots and winding stories together, specifically casting off her glamorous sheen and disappearing into the skin of an ordinary senior citizen who is neither off her rocker nor down for the final count.

In Her Shoes puts its best foot forward to genuinely wear its heart on its sleeve and its brain in its title. While not nearly as thoughtful as it tries to finally resonate and is perhaps a little too literal in its underlying meanings (the plethora of pumps that play a honking huge role to symbolize the grandness and diversity of, you know, life and stuff), In Her Shoes doesn't seek to rock the boat like some of the more adventurous chick flicks in recent years (Bridget Jones's Diary, About a Boy). Instead, the film takes the spirit of a lazy, sparkly pop song that reminds us of simple wisdoms and bonds between blood, and has you humming along to its warmly familiar tune for days to come.

Grade: B
Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 130 Mins.