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Demonstrating yet again the creative pitfalls of both video-shot and improvised features, "The Chateau" both looks and sounds worse than its promising if rather familiar premise would suggest. The tale of two mismatched American brothers who attempt to claim their inherited French chateau, the film suffers from rambling, repetitive dialogue and the visual drabness endemic to digital video. Some charming performances and amusing moments fail to compensate for the overall awkwardness.

Orphaned brothers Graham Paul Rudd) and Allen (Romany Malco), the latter of whom prefers to be called Rex, have arrived in the French countryside to claim their chateau, inherited from a long-lost great uncle. Full of hope, they have their expectations dashed when they arrive at the run-down estate, which still houses a full staff, including an officious butler, Jean Didier Flamand); a comely young maid, Isabelle (Sylvie Testud); and the elderly maid, Sabine (Maria Verdi), and her groundskeeper husband Pierre (Phillipe Nahon). The workers are rather confused by the surprising appearance of the two brothers. Not helping matters is their limited command of French and the fact that Graham is white and Allen, who was adopted, is black.

Much of the film's attempts at humor revolve around those two situations, with endless and quickly tiresome mileage derived from Graham's fumbling attempts to speak French, with the predictable malapropisms resulting, and people's confusion at the brothers' different skin tones. The dialogue, which was apparently developed in improvisations with the performers, lacks the comic crispness and wit that only good writing can produce. Even such promising scenes as the one in which the brothers attempt to sell their white elephant to an egocentric rock star (a dead-on Donal Logue) fail to deliver. Another major plot element, involving the romantic rivalry that develops between Graham and Rex over Isabelle, is similarly lackluster, though Testud's sly and wittily minimal performance does provide some spark.

Otherwise, the humor is strictly of the predictable variety, including such would-be comic highlights as Rex's running around in his underwear trying to find good cell phone reception. The final plot twists prove both cliched -- wily servants getting the better of the masters yet again -- and less than plausible.

Director-screenwriter Peretz is unable to provide crispness to the proceedings, with the film feeling far longer than its 92-minute running time. The best element is the charmingly self-effacing performance by Rudd, who demonstrates an admirable willingness to play his lead role in comically dunderheaded fashion.

THE CHATEAU

IFC Films

Credits:

Director-screenwriter: Jesse Peretz

Producers: Scott Macaulay, Robin O'Hara

Executive producers: John Penotti, Fisher Stevens, Bradley Yonover, Dolly Hall

Director of photography: Tom Richmond

Production designer: Christian Marti

Editors: Steve Hamilton, James Lyons

Cast:

Graham Granville: Paul Rudd

Allen "Rex" Granville: Romany Malco

Isabelle: Sylvie Testud

Jean/Jacques Granville: Didier Flamand

Pierre: Phillipe Nahon

Sabine: Maria Verdi

Sonny: Donal Logue

Running time -- 92 minutes

MPAA rating: R...