That being said, I love the film "Kissing Jessica Stein" unapologetically. It is a romantic comedy by definition — a witty, aggressively metropolitan love story, and don't be fooled. It doesn't star Sandra Bullock or Drew Barrymore*. "Love is hard" means something here, and not just that it's tough to wait for enemies to realize that they only hate each other because, deep down, the honesty's too much.

What makes "Jessica Stein" so palatable? First off, the stars: we've never seen them, and they look like normal (albeit very attractive) people. Jennifer Westfeldt and Heather Juergensen are believable in their respective roles, with a credibility extending past their appealingly imperfect exteriors. The script, which they also wrote, is smart, edgy and quick. It feels a lot like a first date that really clicks.

And their first date really clicks. Jessica (Westfeldt) and Helen (Juergensen) are previously straight girls who meet, have Indian food, and enter a deliberate and micromanaged sexual affair. Helen, the adventurer, takes to it with a breezy confidence. Jessica moves like a girl on a tightrope who can't stop looking down. The tension between their attitudes is electrifying; you sincerely root for them to keep it together and balance each other out.

The film evolved from a series of sketches about dating (also written by Westfeldt and Juergenson) and the movie is best when it remembers its episodic roots. I've never seen the montage used to such fine effect. A lightning round of nightmare dates is hysterical, and the scenes depicting Jessica and Helen's baby steps toward Lesbian Sex are awkward, adorable, and utterly ridiculous.

Under the lilting patter of the dialogue, the stylish soundtrack (Ella, Dinah, and Blosson Dearie. Nothing finer.) and the brisk urban pace, you have a sweet, innocent picture. At one point, late in the movie, Jessica is talking to her brother about "the One." She says "Right, I know, I know, but look. I don't even believe that anymore, I don't believe there's just one person, I think there are, like, seven."

She's seen too much, experienced too much to believe in fairy tales. But Jessica, and the movie, have only modified the story — it's a more sophisticated, but more forgiving, dressed-up version. We may not be looking for Mr. or Ms. Right, but fate hasn't abandoned us. It's just relaxed the rules a little.

*Don't get me wrong. Nothing cures what ails like two Tylenol, a glass of orange juice, and "Never Been Kissed."