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Let me just tell you that I hate Hugh Grant. Okay, maybe hate is a strong word (I'm sure he's a very nice guy), but his cinematic persona inspires in me the same feelings nails on a chalkboard inspires in others. I've always found him to be grating, whiny, smug and irritating. Even his biggest hits, such as Four Weddings and a Funeral (laughably nominated for a Best Picture Oscar) felt like little more than vehicles for his smarmy smirk, not real movies. I also have a problem with personalities that the public adores but who seem to lack a dark side. Just as I didn't like Whitney Houston until she became a crackhead, Grant's finest performance for me was on the Leno show after he stopped by Sunset Boulevard and tried to bugger that prostitute. So as a Grant hater, let me just let you in on a little secret (Pssst! Don't tell anyone!): I loved About a Boy. Even if you hate Sir Hugh like I do, I think you'll agree with me that this is one bloody fine flick.

Will Freeman (Grant) is not exactly what you'd call an eligible bachelor. Living lavishly off the royalties from a hit Christmas tune penned by his late father, Will excels at nothing except doing nothing. Fond of shopping, getting his hair cut and attending S.P.A.T. (Single Parents, Alone Together) meetings to pick up chicks (they always dig a dedicated, lonely dad), he's up to his usual tricks until a disastrous fling requires a speedy exit. But his failed S.P.A.T. scheme drops him right into the lap of Suzie (Victoria Smurfit) and Marcus (Nicholas Hoult), the socially awkward 12-year-old son of her flaky best friend, Fiona (Toni Collette). A series of odd situations leads to Will and Marcus becoming unlikely friends, and when Will falls for the smart and beautiful Rachel (Rachel Weisz) it all gets a little...messy. What's a boy in love supposed to do?

About a Boy is one of those films that I thought would make me cringe. It starred Hugh Grant, had a cutesy title with a precocious kid, and, well, starred Hugh Grant. And it was also directed by the Weitz Brothers (that's Chris and Paul), which didn't exactly inspire confidence. Sure, American Pie was funny, but what do these two Tinseltown brats know about working-class adult comedy (or modern-day London, for that matter?) But I was surprised. About a Boy avoid all the pitfalls of the genre. Grant is foppish and clever but not whiny and annoying. (When he realizes he's "transparent, totally transparent" on a date with Weisz, for once he actually means it.) Hoult manages to create one of the most layered and dimensional child characters in recent memory, and the luminous Weisz and the edgy Collette are perfectly cast.

Despite being a mega-hit in Europe, About a Boy only did fair business over here (which is hardly surprising, as few Americans had even heard of the original smash novel by Nick Hornsby). What a shame. Here we have a character driven and often moving, even literate, comedy. How often do we get to see one of those? And the soundtrack by Badly Drawn Boy ain't so shabby, either. I suppose there is nothing I can do to convince you Grant haters and those determined to relegate About a Boy to the chick flick bin that you should rid yourself of any preconceptions and give it a shot. So just go out and rent it. Not since he got caught getting that blow job has Grant been this funny.

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