Laws of Attraction Starring Julianne Moore and Pierce Brosnan. Directed by Peter Howitt. Written by Aline Brosh McKenna and Robert Harling. Rated PG-13.

Following Jennifer Garner's lead from last week, Julianne Moore likewise kicks up her heels in a light comedy, this one called Laws of Attraction. She has distinguished herself in heavy tragic roles, such as those in Boogie Nights, The End of the Affair, and Far From Heaven. Her current film is a useful reminder of her sense of humor. Movie stars tend to take themselves too seriously. More of them should lighten up (though considering the state of what passes for comedy films in Hollywood, it's perhaps understandable that they don't). Laws of Attraction unhappily reminds us of this as well, and it might be a completely dreary affair if not for the sharp underplaying of its cast.

Moore plays Audrey, a high-powered Manhattan divorce attorney who prides herself on her ability to smooth things over between acrimonious partners. This endless conciliating has wound her pretty tight -- during one rather impressive panic attack in a bathroom stall, she scarfs down an entire Snowball in two seconds. Then she goes up against Daniel (Pierce Brosnan), a lawyer newly arrived from the West Coast, who seems to have been put on earth to raise her hackles. He has a take-no-prisoners approach to divorce and argues brilliantly enough to beat Audrey in court, despite his rumpled dress, habitual tardiness, and chronic disorganization.

Of course, they fall in love, and writers Aline Brosh McKenna and Robert Harling can't think of any way to bring the two together except through a night of drunken sex. (Later on, they get drunk again and wake up the next morning married to each other.) The script is weirdly structured; it's about two-thirds of a conventional romantic comedy sandwiched around an interlude where Daniel and Audrey travel to Ireland on a case that feels like it's been pulled from a completely different film. Despite that hiccup, the movie doesn't really deviate from the norm in any meaningful way.

That leaves us with the cast and English director Peter Howitt, who has a nice light comic touch (Sliding Doors, Johnny English). Nevertheless, it's the actors who do the most to transform this pedestrian material into something modestly enjoyable. Moore's nervous mannerisms are smartly deployed to wring laughs from the script, and she plays well off Brosnan. For his part, he gives a variation on his usual suave shtick, and while he doesn't show off any new moves, his act fits here pretty well. Parker Posey and Michael Sheen provide capable support as a warring couple.

And then there's Frances Fisher as Audrey's mom. She's in resplendent form, delivering the best lines. (On her black eyes from recent plastic surgery: "Laugh all you want, dear, but I've got the lower lids of a teen-ager. A teen-ager who's gone through the windshield, but still a teen-ager.") She also happens to possess all of Julianne Moore's salient characteristics -- sexiness, pinpoint comic timing, piercing intelligence, and red hair. It's a piece of casting good enough to make you cry. It's also chief among the minor pleasures that Laws of Attraction is made of.