The characters are well written, there's some genuinely funny moments and the tale is rather novel too.

Luke Wilson plays Alex, an author suffering from writer's block, but who will pick up $125,000 on completion.

However, he owes the Cuban Mob $100,000 for gambling debts and if he doesn't pay up in 30 days he'll wind up dead.

Desperate for help, he employs a stenographer to dictate his new tome too.

But what he gets is the opinionated Emma (Kate Hudson) who argues his every motive as the plot develops.

And what makes this all the more interesting is that, as his story unfolds, we are transported into the book, where Hudson, Wilson and the gorgeous Sophie Marceau take on characters within the 1920s Gatsby-like world of the story being written.

Delightful.