Some movies require what the critics call ``the willing suspension ofdisbelief.'' ``Mrs. Winterbourne'' requires disbelief to be hoisted by aheavy-duty crane and detonated. I was happy to perform this duty, however, sincethe movie is charming, if as evanescent as those cookie wrappers you get atItalian restaurants--where after you light them, they fly up for a moment ofglory and then disintegrate into invisible specks.

The movie stars Ricki Lake, in her first starring movie role since hertransformation into a daytime TV talker. One of her qualities is a no-nonsensewarmth, and she uses it here in the story of Connie Doyle, an unhappy girl whoruns away from home and lands in New York City. She's befriended by a lousenamed Steve (Loren Dean), who introduces her to a life of ``no flowers, but lotsof stolen car radios.'' When she becomes pregnant, he throws her out, and later,as she stands homeless in the rain beneath his window, tosses her a quarter.

Poor Connie. She drifts to Grand Central Station, gets a ticket from afriendly stranger, boards a train, and meets a friendly and charitable young mannamed Hugh (Brendan Fraser). Hugh is traveling with his own pregnant wife, andin a moment of girl-to-girl talk, the wife allows Connie to try on her weddingring. Then the train crashes, Hugh and his wife are killed, and when Conniewakes up, she is on the luxurious estate of Hugh's family, the Winterbournes.

They have never met Hugh's wife, and of course, because of the ring, they thinkConnie is the wife and soon-to-be mother of the Winterbourne heir.

That's the setup. Read no further if you want to spare yourself certainplot details--although if you close your eyes and meditate, I am sure you canpredict with amazing accuracy what happens for the rest of the movie, especiallyif I tell you that the late Hugh has an identical twin brother named Bill (alsoplayed by Fraser).

The estate is ruled by the wise Mrs. Winterbourne (Shirley MacLaine), awidow who was herself not the soul of respectability when she married into thefamily. She is ill, and welcomes a new grandchild, and soon, wouldn't you know,Bill and Connie are dancing the tango in the kitchen, and marriage is proposed.

There are a few hitches along the way. Bill develops certain suspicionsabout Connie, but shelves them because of how she handles a crucial sceneinvolving Mrs. Winterbourne's will. And then there is the problem of the evilSteve, who might be interested in blackmailing a future Mrs. Winterbourne.

What's best about the movie are the actors' human qualities. ShirleyMacLaine has a few lines so sensible, I'm sure she must have edited themherself. Ricki Lake has a direct, blunt honesty that is appealing, although Ithink her romance would be more plausible if she'd been slightly more polished.

Brendan Fraser is solid as the lover who sees through deception and out theother side. And there are some nice moments with Paco (Miguel Sandoval), the gayCuban chauffeur, who considers himself a Winterbourne of sorts, and tells theweeping Connie, ``If bad things are going to happen, let them happen here.'' ``Mrs. Winterbourne'' has the kind of plot that might have distinguishedan old Hollywood tearjerker, and in fact, it did: ``No Man of Her Own'' (1950)with Barbara Stanwyck. It is an old-fashioned, manipulated romantic melodrama,where coincidence is a condition of the universe. Because it is light andstylish and good-hearted, it is quite possible to enjoy, in the right frame ofmind. But I am not sure it is worth the effort of putting on your shoes andgoing out to the theater. This is more of a movie to see on video, on an emptynight when you need something to hurl at the gloom.