'Priceless' star power

French actress Audrey Tautou drew comparisons to Audrey Hepburn during the early part of her career. Now, she’s staring down such lofty praise with “Priceless,” a new French import with serious echoes of Hepburn’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.“ And don’t you know the diminutive Tautou stands up tall in the tale of the ingenue tape.

The new romantic comedy finds Tautou slinking from one rich man after another along the Cote d’Azur. Irene (Tautou) works hard for her boyfriends’ money, but she can’t resist the goofy charms of a bartender named Jean (Gad Elmaleh of “The Valet” fame) who pretends he’s as rich as the men Irene routinely fleeces.

A few mistaken identities later, and Jean goes broke trying to keep up with Irene’s lifestyle. But two can play Irene’s game, so Jean pairs up with an aging socialite who plies Jean with enough money to keep up his pursuit of Irene.

Sound complicated? It is, and the most amazing part is that it all works in a very American way. That is, in the way that most American rom-coms should. Divine chemistry. Classic farce structure. Gags that flow with the story and leave us smiling. And the payoff packs more of an emotional punch than it has any right to expect.

"Priceless" faces a stiff challenge in the marketplace. Tautou isn't a box office draw, and subtitled movies put most people off - my dear Dad won't so much as pop a subtitled DVD into his player. That's a shame, since you'd be hard-pressed to find a better movie value this weekend than "Priceless."

(Photo: Audrey Tautou makes being a gold digger a virtue in "Priceless")