'CHARLOTTE' A TRIUMPH OF STYLE OVER SUBSTANCE.

Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Critic

If they were smart, the people at Warner Bros. would position their fairy-tale World War II romance ``Charlotte Gray'' as the touchy-feely antidote to Ridley Scott's brutish (and far superior) war movie ``Black Hawk Down.'' Siphoning moviegoers from other theaters is about the only chance this breathless movie has to make a buck or two before disappearing from sight (and memory) altogether.

``Charlotte Gray'' is the latest in a line of chick-flick World War II movies focusing on a love story at the expense of logic, historical accuracy and just about anything else you can imagine. Even compared to films like ``Pearl Harbor'' and the Czech ``Dark Blue World,'' ``Charlotte'' suffers because at least those movies possessed occasional moments of tension and a broader view of history and politics. ``Charlotte'' is too busy focusing on its actors' cheekbones to notice or care.

Charlotte (Cate Blanchett) is a Scottish woman living in 1942 London eager to do her part for the war effort. She meets and quickly falls into bed with an RAF pilot (Rupert Penry-Jones) only to lose him when his plane is shot down over rural France. Already interested in fulfilling her duty (``Good must triumph over evil,'' she muses in a typically profound voice-over), Charlotte parachutes into Vichy France with the idea of finding and rescuing her lover.

Once there, Charlotte works as a courier for Allied forces. Her French contact is Julien (Billy Crudup, utterly wasted), a communist resistance fighter who houses Charlotte with his crusty farm father (Michael Gambon). Charlotte gathers information, participates in a nighttime raid, protects two Jewish children, looks for her fly boy and starts to have feelings for Julien, all the time looking impossibly exquisite under an avalanche of makeup.

Playing a steely spy should be a role tailor-made for Blanchett, but the actress drifts thanks to the vagaries of the screenplay. Gillian Armstrong (who worked with Blanchett in ``Oscar and Lucinda'') directs with an emphasis on understated action, melodramatic characters and pretty scenery, giving the movie the feel of a lush Lifetime cable project. Wait a few months and you can watch it for free on that channel.

``CHARLOTTE GRAY''

(Rated PG-13: some war-related violence, sensuality and brief strong language)

The stars: Cate Blanchett, Billy Crudup, Michael Gambon.

Behind the scenes: Directed by Gillian Armstrong. Screenplay by Jeremy Brock based on the book by Sebastian Faulks. Released by Warner Bros.

Running time: Two hours, one minute.

Playing: Landmark's Westside Pavilion in West Los Angeles; Laemmle's Monica in Santa Monica.

Our rating: Two stars