THE screenplay, which director Jean-Pierre Ameris co-wrote with Phillipe Blasband, belabours a single joke for longer than it can stand, thereby diminishing what could have been a charming comedy.

Angelique has trained under a master chocolatier. But chronic shyness is limiting her life, despite attending meetings of Emotional Anonymous. Jean-Rene, owner of a boutique chocolate shop in financial difficulty, is also chronically shy. Their combined talents may restore the business but that doesn’t change their social misfortunes.

The result of Ameris’ persevering with this shared theme verges on tedious. We know quite soon what will happen to these two unhappy victims of a social inadequacy. But the film lacks diversion from that single issue and its predictable resolution takes too long. That’s sad, because Isabel Carre is delectable as Angelique and Benoit Poolevoorde is totally likeable as Jean-Pierre.

Films about chocolate always leave one unsatisfied, however strong the screenplay, which this one isn’t. I know a shop that sells 400-gram bags of individually-wrapped dark chocolate bon-bons for $11.50. Decadent. Self indulgent. Delicious. If only there was one on every corner!

At Greater Union