CATCH A FALLING CLICHE.

Byline: David Kronke

Sela Ward has spent so much of the season suffering exquisitely as Lily Manning on ``Once and Again'' that it's nice to see her enjoying herself a little bit in the romantic comedy ``Catch a Falling Star.'' Alas, here the suffering is left up to the rest of us.

Ward plays a petulant Hollywood actress who storms off a set on location in New England after she catches her slick screenwriter fiance in a dalliance with her stand-in. She winds up in a small town, where she takes on her most challenging role - a regular gal - and befriends some locals, including the hearty waitress with some dreams (Rebecca Jenkins) and particularly the soft-spoken fella (John Slattery) trying to keep the struggling steel mill from going under. She comes to understand that the modest lifestyle embodied in this town is more ``real'' than her Hollywood theatrics.

Can you count the cliches in the last paragraph? Throw in some sloppy plotting and character motivations, as well as hackneyed scripting (He: ``You got a certain big-city something-or-other, but not entirely! I like it!'' She, after they're smitten: ``I'm lost without a script!''), and you have a production leavened only by Ward's presence. Besides, ``Notting Hill'' did all this last year. Falling star? Ward doesn't know the half of it.

- D.K.

THE FACTS

--The show: ``Catch a Falling Star.''

--What: Romantic comedy about a famous actress finding love in a small town.

--Who: Sela Ward, Rebecca Jenkins, Jane Curtin, John Slattery.

--Where: CBS (Channel 2).

--When: 9 tonight.

--Our rating: Two stars

CAPTION(S):

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Photo: Sela Ward finds love with John Slattery in ``Catch a Falling Star.''