"Any man has the power to sweep a woman off her feet - they just need the right broom".

And Alex "Hitch" Hitchens (Smith) has a whole closet full of them. As a New York "date doctor" he puts together the plans to help the helpless get their girl.

However, while assisting meek accountant Kevin James to woo a glamorous socialite (Amber Valletta), the schoolmaster of seduction meets his match.

She's gorgeous tabloid gossip columnist Sara Melas (Mendes), a self-assured singleton who's happy - or so she thinks - on her own.

Hitch - utilising his vast arsenal of courtship lures - is convinced he can break down her playful resistance...but love and life aren't that simple.

Director Andy Tennant, whose last outing was Sweet Home Alabama, has crafted a date movie with genuine appeal at time when most rom-coms are happy to join the dots.

Smith is on fine romantic comedy form as the part-psychologist, part serial seducer who helps out unprepossessing types like tubby number cruncher Albert (James).

He may charge a fee...but he does operate a code of conduct and his manipulation of the heartstrings never becomes a case of Dangerous Liaisons lite.

Character-wise, he's flawed but likeable even if Mendes isn't the finest comedy actress the Fresh Prince has ever shared screen time with.

Hitch is faced with the classic rom-com conundrum - if Sara finds out what he does, the relationship is off (although the idea of a gossip columnist making moral judgements doesn't bear thinking about).

Everything comes to a head during a terrific scene at a speed-dating night when Hitch and Sara slug it out emotionally with an unattached chorus having their say.

It's not deep or meaningful but it does nail a few relationship truths firmly on the head while delighting with sharp dialogue delivered by rounded characters.

Get hitched to Hitch.

Tim Evans