Alex Wyler (Keanu Reeves) opens the mailbox of his newly purchased lake house and discovers a note from the last tenant with instructions on forwarding her mail. The problem is that the Alex knows the lake house has been abandoned for many years and the note, looking crisp and new, is dated two years in the future.

Now, a plot conceit like this could easily jump-start a Hitchcock thriller but director Alejandro Agresti's "The Lake House" is heading in a very different direction: towards hanky-sniffling romance.

The mailbox proves to be a magical conduit between Alex, who lives in 2004 and Kate Forster (Sandra Bullock) two years ahead in 2006. The two pass notes back and forth and begin to develop a relationship that leads to what may be the ultimate long-distance romance (the next time you fall for someone in Spokane, consider yourself very lucky).

The magical mailbox device comes across, on first blush, as a little too cute (the little flag pops up, the little flag pops down) and places the movie on very thin ice. Our story could easily get mired in unintentional satire of the laid-back work ethic of the U.S. Postal Service. Or, worse, Tim Allen or Herbie the Love Bug might show up.

But Agresti keeps his sights set on a Hallmark moment as he deftly maneuvers past this little piece of Disney magic and gets our attention back on his characters. Alex and Kate respond to this latest wrinkle in communication technology first with surprise and then with suspicion (there must be someone hiding behind one of the bushes laughing his head off) and finally with simple acceptance as they settle down to get to know each other.

"Lake House" sports a strong script and there's a certain sweetness in watching the characters try to connect across time. Alex, learning bits of Kate's history, conspires to show up and catch a glimpse of her. When they finally meet we're treated to the most satisfying scene of the movie. Alex knows their shared history but Kate, at this point in time, doesn't have a clue. It's one of those space/time continuum moments and the two actors rise to the star-crossed chemistry.

The challenge of this high concept movie is that the characters have to pull us into the current of their romance without actually being together. Reeves and Bullock spend a lot of time alone on the screen communicating with voice-overs of their letters. I think all of us appreciate the fact that erotic soliloquy can be tough, but for this movie to be more than a running gag about an animated mailbox that's what has to happen.

Whether Reeves is up to the challenge I'll leave for you to decide. Reeves, who has sometimes been charitably described as "blank," usually needs a little outside help to add some interest to his characters - be it the metrosexual wardrobe of "The Matrix" or the reflective energy of a younger, perky Sandra Bullock in "Speed."

What is surprising is that Bullock, who has plenty of wattage to light up a scene, delivers a subdued, almost depressed performance as Kate. For all its virtues, "The Lake House" needs a shot adrenaline to bring its elegant, mannered plot to life. Bullock should be just the actor to deliver it, but for some reason that opportunity was missed.

In the end, we want to know if the two lovers will overcome the feckless currents of fate and the fumblings of their own pen-pal romance and finally come together. "The Lake House" doesn't disappoint, but the clever script floats through the last few scenes on autopilot.

"The Lake House" is a decent movie - certainly a good date movie - that yearns to be just a little bit better.

Bruce Bulloch can be reached via wseditor@robinsonnews.com