27 Dresses ***

When I was at On Command, the hotel video services company, every month we would have a movie in our top five that had not done that well at the box office, and often not that well with the critics, either, but which had a female-skewing theme. While some would dismiss these movies as "chick flicks," I began to pay attention to the movies that appeal to traveling professional women. These movies center on a woman, or sometimes two women, in a romantic quandary. You know it's going to somehow work out, but the fun is in how they get there. We began to actively identify and promote these movies. After all, women make up more than 40% of business travel these days. And they're more likely than men to order a movie. OK, more likely than men to order a Hollywood feature movie. "27 Dresses" is the latest entry in this category, and it's a perfectly serviceable example.

You know the premise. Super-supportive friend Jane (Katherine Heigl) has been a happy and efficient bridesmaid 27 times, but her world begins to crack when her sister Tess (Malin Akerman) lands the gorgeous boss (Ed Burns) she's secretly in love with. Enter equally gorgeous writer (James Marsden) who cynically covers the wedding beat that Jane has dedicated her life to, who she instantly dislikes. Throw in the wise-cracking friend (Judy Greer), and you can finish it from here, right? No matter, it's a guilty pleasure and as satisfying as a piece of New York cheese cake.

"27 Dresses" raises no important questions, breaks no new ground, and will win no awards. But it is a fine popcorn movie for traveling professional women, and tolerable for guys, too, if they get dragged to this one now that gratitude for sitting through "The Lake House" has run its course. Actually, come to think of it, there are some big questions answered by this movie. Is it a pleasure to watch Katherine Heigl act for more than an hour and a half? Yes. Can James Marsden, perennial "other guy" and the prince in "Enchanted" carry a romantic lead? Yes. Will women flock to this movie? Well, today in a full theater I counted only 4 men in the audience at the matinee. I think it's a hit.

Rated PG-13. 107 Minutes. Produced and distributed by Fox 2000 Pictures.