Angel-A (15) <!-- none onestar twostar threestar fourstar fivestar -->

What's the French for "twaddle"? Luc Besson, never a name to lift the spirits, writes and directs a maddening slice of whimsy that would like to be the It's a Wonderful Life, de nos jours. Shot in summertime Paris, in black and white, it concerns a diminutive rogue called André (Jamel Debbouze) who is deep in debt to various hoods and hasn't a hope of paying them back. About to hurl himself into the Seine, he instead saves another would-be jumper, Angela (Rie Rasmussen) from suicide, then discovers that this blonde stunner is actually his guardian angel.

Cue a tiresome cavalcade of encounters during which Angela reveals a talent for smoking, and André a tendency to stop a movie dead in its tracks with his nervy, garrulous patter. Besson's camera stands idly by, watching him try to improvise. Apparently, Debbouze is a stand-up comedian in France - I will make special efforts to avoid his show next time I'm over.