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'Dot the I': The love triangle never really squares

In the somewhat smart, but mostly superficial "Dot the I," newbie writer-director Matthew Parkhill fails to cross his t's and mind his p's and q's.

Summit Entertainment 'Dot the I' D+ The verdict: Lacks much more than an undotted I. Director: Matthew Parkhill Starring: Gael Garcia Bernal, Natalia Verbeke, James D'Arcy, Tom Hardy, Charlie Cox Run time: 92 minutes Release date: March 30, 2005 Rating: R for strong sexuality/nudity, language and some violence. On the web Official movie site Rate "Dot the I"   Go see it   Make it a matinee   Wait to rent   Don't bother Voter Limit: Once per Hour View Poll Results

A love triangle with a last-act twist, the film takes us to a bachelorette party for Carmen (Natalia Verbeke), a Spanish dancer living in London. She has just gotten engaged to Barnaby (James D'Arcy), whose checklist of good-husband material (money, looks, devotion to her, etc.) makes up for his lack of passion and slightly stuffy manner.

As Carmen settles in with her pals, she's told about an old French custom whereby the blushing bride-to-be must select a total stranger on whom to bestow her last maidenly kiss. She chooses an out-of-work actor named Kit. And no wonder; he's played by Gael Garc’a Bernal ("The Motorcycle Diaries"). Their kiss turns out to be more than just a kiss — powerful enough to transform a frog into a prince. Or at least plant doubts about settling down with decent but dull Barnaby.

However, All Is Not As It Seems, as evidenced by a mysterious video camera that seems to be stalking Carmen or Kit or, perhaps, both.

Unfortunately, it's hard to care who's being stalked or by whom. While stylishly done, Parkhill's script isn't nearly as clever as he thinks it is, and the sucker punch near the end lacks, well, punch. This is the sort of thing one expects from a too-bright-for-his-own-good film student who's finishing up his thesis.

Best think of "Dot the I" as an opportunity to watch Bernal, who is not only gorgeous and talented, but clearly has "star" embedded in his DNA.