The Lake House is an agreeable enough wallow in amorous angst, pegged on a novel gimmick. Kate (Bullock) and Alex (Reeves) live in the same home, but two years apart, their only means of communication a mystical mailbox. "It's kind of a long-distance relationship", quips Kate.

The fantasy angle kicks in when architect Alex arrives at the eponymous stilt-supported house. He finds a message from previous tenant Kate apologising for the paw prints by the door. What paw prints? The paw prints that appear the following day.... A few confused exchanges later, the penny drops: Kate's in 2006, but Alex is living in 2004. D'oh!

A letter-based love affair ensues, meaning that our leads share little physical screen-time (aside from a smoochy interlude where Alex seeks out Kate's '04 incarnation). Still, while Reeves' Oscar shelf is likely to remain bare for another year, Bullock holds her half of the movie up well, proving that she can do subdued just as well as sunny.