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Verdict: Anachronistic silliniess peppered with mildly sweet moments.

Details: Directed by Kenneth Branagh. Rated PG.

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Review: Maybe Kenneth Branagh should have left the Hollywood musical where he found it, back in the 1930s.

Branagh, the closest thing we have to Olivier's heir for cinematic Shakespeare, this time couples the lesser-known comedy "Love's Labour's Lost" with the very familiar Fred-and-Ginger trappings of the old song-and-dance romance.

The result is pure anachronism: A centuries-old, quadruple romance plays out amid the early rumblings of World War II, with the lovers breaking into Cole Porter or Irving Berlin tunes that stand in for some of Shakespeare's language.

It's mildly sweet and funny early on, with lush opening credits that are a throwback to old musicals, and corny newsreels that help propel the story and allow Branagh to hold the movie to a trim 93 minutes.

After a time, though, the bouts of Shakespearean dialogue feel like setups for the next production number. And the staging becomes tiresome, even a trifle absurd, notably in an Esther Williams synchronized-swim parody and a rather graceless "showstopper" set to "There's No Business Like Show Business."

Compounding matters, most of the cast lacks the vocal and hoofing chops to carry off the crooning and cavorting.

A newsreel sets the scene: The King of Navarre (Alessandro Nivola) and three buddies (Branagh, Matthew Lillard and Adrian Lester) have signed oaths swearing off women for three years to devote themselves to monastic life and study.

"They'll sleep little, eat and drink less," the chirpy announcer proclaims.

The rub arrives in the form of the Princess of France (Alicia Silverstone) and three lovely maidens (Natasha McElhone, Emily Mortimer and Carmen Ejogo). Smitten, the men halfheartedly cling to celibate ways before casting off the monk's life.

There are a few credibly whimsical moments among the songs. Timothy Spall as the Spanish soldier Don Armado does an amusing, buffoonish take on "I Get a Kick Out of You," while Branagh and the other young men fancifully float to a library's rafters as they sing "Cheek to Cheek."

While most of the musical performances are limp, Lester does a decent, spirited dance number, and McElhone delivers her vocals with skill and gusto.

The spoken performances, though, lack the bonniness of Branagh's earlier Shakespeare romance, "Much Ado About Nothing," which co-starred Emma Thompson, Denzel Washington, Keanu Reeves and Michael Keaton.

Here, Branagh is simply working with a weaker cast. Silverstone, though pretty and perky, delivers Shakespeare's dialogue with the annoying sibilance of a clueless teen-ager. And Nathan Lane is curiously unamusing as Costard the clown.

Had Branagh tried a straight adaptation of "Love's Labour's Lost," he might have captured more of the endearing elegance that made "Much Ado" such a charmer. This time, the format isn't likely to win converts to a less popular Shakespeare play.

Viewers can forgive the hokiness of an old Astaire-Rogers musical, recognizing it as a product of its times. Movie musicals of the 1930s were cheap escapism for a nation battered by the Depression.

At best, "Love's Labour's Lost" may make some moviegoers nostalgic for the real thing. If so, the cheap escapism thing still works: Three or four old-time song-and-dance flicks can be had on video rental for the price of a ticket to see this musical misfire.

— David Germain, Associated Press