“27 Dresses”

Chick-flick fans of the world, rejoice -- and lift a glass to "27 Dresses."

Maybe not a glass filled with Dom Perignon or another elite champagne. But not a flat, flea-market cheapie, either.

This romantic comedy may be as frilly and fluttery as the title bridesmaid's attire, as fluffy and sweet as the buttercream icing atop a towering wedding cake.

Thanks to a nimble cast and an insouciant spirit, however, "27 Dresses" also offers a more enjoyable time than its by-the-numbers plot would indicate.

Think of it as a wedding you're dreading -- until you actually show up and get into the spirit of things.

Clearly, it's not the sort of spirit meant for those who like their movies rough, tough and in-your-face.

But for those who love to cry at weddings -- and chuckle along with a lovelorn protagonist forever stumbling down the rocky road to romance -- "27 Dresses" should satisfy your yearnings quite nicely.

Especially if you can never get enough of weddings. Even when they're not your own.

That assessment certainly applies to Jane Nichols (Katherine Heigl, building nicely on her big-screen breakthrough in "Knocked Up").

At work, Jane's the hyper-efficient assistant to George (Edward Burns), a prince of an entrepreneur -- think of him as the green Eddie Bauer -- who's too busy being princely to notice how ardently Jane dotes on him.

Fortunately, Jane has something to keep her mind off her hopeless crush on her perfect boss. Sort of.

She's created a second career as the ideal bridesmaid, one who's ready, willing and able to perform any duty -- and wear any dress, however hideous, in public. And in pictures, for posterity.

But Jane goes above and beyond that self-sacrificing standard. She not only wears but keeps all those outlandish outfits, taking up precious closet space that could be devoted to her own pursuits instead of other people's.

Jane's strange fixation on other people's weddings -- and the curious lack of romance in her own life -- makes her a prime target for cynical (is there any other kind?) newspaper reporter Kevin ("Enchanted's" James Marsden), who's desperate to escape the wedding beat. And hopes to do just that with a hard-hitting profile of the always-a-bridesmaid Jane.

Who is, in turn, facing her most trying bridesmaid duty yet: maid of honor for her spoiled, smokin' hot little sister Tess ("The Heartbreak Kid's" Malin Akerman), who has just accepted the proposal of her latest conquest: the totally besotted George.

No prizes will be awarded to anyone who guesses that Jane's devotion to her oblivious boss, and her obnoxious sister, will be seriously tested. Or that her adversarial relationship with the scruffy yet studly Kevin will undergo a gradual transformation -- fueled, in part, by too much booze and a hey-kids, top-of-the-bar sing-along to Elton John's "B-B-B-Benny and the Jets."

That scene and others -- notably an amusing montage of Jane modeling "27 Dresses' " frightful title outfits for an incredulous Kevin -- add a sprightly zest to the movie's connect-the-dots story line.

For that, credit choreographer-turned-director Anne Fletcher ("Step Up"), who injects even routine scenes -- and in this movie, there are plenty of them -- with a fizzy zest that's downright infectious.

Similarly, screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna ("The Devil Wears Prada," "Laws of Attraction") embellishes many of those routine scenes with the kind of crisp one-liners that make them snap, crackle and pop.

Especially when the patter's being snapped by Kevin's no-nonsense editor ("The Office's" deadpan Melora Hardin) or the scene-stealing Judy Greer ("Arrested Development") as Jane's inevitably quirky best pal.

Ultimately, however, the romantic leads must win the audience's hearts, as well as each other's, if movies like "27 Dresses" hope to work.

On that score, Heigl and Marsden prove winning indeed.

After losing the girl in a string of movies from "The Notebook" to "Enchanted," Marsden finally gets the happily-ever-after role, demonstrating the kind of cynical bravado that prompted comedian George Carlin to remark that, inside every cynic, there's a disappointed idealist.

As for his kindred spirit in dashed hopes, Heigl once again proves her big-screen chops, combining self-deprecating charm and a boundless appetite for physical comedy. (Especially when she's strutting her stuff in the outrageous bridesmaid's get-ups concocted by costume designer Catherine Marie Thomas.)

Comedy is not always pretty, as Steve Martin once reminded us. Neither are the "27 Dresses" Katherine Heigl's character wears so fearlessly in the movie.

But pretty is as pretty does. And as long as we're laughing at those "27 Dresses" and the woman wearing them, looks -- hers and theirs -- don't really matter.

Contact movie critic Carol Cling at ccling@reviewjournal.com or (702) 383-0272.