Grade: C+

Verdict: Fairly entertaining, albeit in a bland sort of way.

Details: Starring Jean Reno, Christian Clavier and Christina Applegate. Directed by Jean-Marie Poire. Rated PG-13 for language and violence. One hour, 30 minutes.

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Review: French comedies are usually enjoyed by American audiences for all the wrong reasons. They're either so weird they're funny, or they're so offensive they're funny. Hence the reasoning behind "Just Visiting," a slightly Americanized remake of "Les Visiteurs" ("The Visitors"), the most successful film in French box-office history (released in 1993, it even beat out "Jurassic Park").

Directed by Jean-Marie Poire and co-written by Poire and Christian Clavier, "Les Visiteurs" told the tale of heroic Count Godefroy (Jean Reno), a 12th-century knight, and his grungy squire Jacguasse (Clavier). In an attempt to win back his lady love, Godefroy arranges to travel back in time to avert the tragic death of her father, the king. A miscalculation sends him and his squire hurtling through time to arrive in contemporary Paris. Anachronistic, subtitled wackiness ensues.

When released in the States, "Les Visiteurs" was pilloried by critics and failed to find much of an audience. Not to be discouraged, Poire and Clavier are making another go at it by collaborating on a more Yank-friendly story with John Hughes and starting from scratch.

"Just Visiting" reunites director Poire with Reno and Clavier, who reprise their roles from the original (although they've been renamed Thibault and Andre, respectively). This time around, Thibault accidentally kills his fair wench (Christina Applegate) after he's slipped some drugged wine by a rival.

He attempts to travel into the past to avert the catastrophe, but, due to an inept magician (Malcolm McDowell), he and Andre are sent in the wrong direction and arrive in modern-day Chicago. There they meet Thibault's descendant, Julia (Applegate again), and her gold-digging boyfriend, Hunter (Matt Ross).

"Just Visiting" doesn't quite have the giddy, freewheeling energy of its previous incarnation. But it's fairly entertaining, albeit in a bland sort of way.