Helen Hunt's directorial debut Then She Found Me is lovely. The film, an adaptation of Eleanor Lipman's bestselling novel, is stuffed to the breaking point with overlapping story lines. It's a romantic comedy, it's a mother-daughter drama, and most importantly, it's an unpretentious, gentle, moving film. Hunt, who co-wrote the screenplay, also stars as April Epner, a vanity-free thirty-nine-year old schoolteacher. She wears sandals and old sweaters, her pinched face, free of make-up, often appears haggard. She desperately wants to have a baby.

Major plot elements in Then She Found Me include April's abandonment by her recent husband (Matt Broderick); the sudden death of her adoptive mother (Lynn Cohen); the equally sudden emergence of April's birth mother (Bette Midler); and a new love interest in the form of a slightly deranged but wildly appealing single father (Colin Firth). Plus there is the issue of getting pregnant.

The awkward romance between the sad teacher and even sadder father is surprisingly sweet. The emotionally damaged adults conduct a more than careful relationship primarily over the telephone -- their banter is funny and warm and convincing. Audiences may subconsciously recognize Firth as Mr. Darby -- he has embodied the ultimate husband in both the BBC miniseries Pride and Prejudice and as Marc Darcy in the Bridget Jones franchise.

Bette Midler, a strong personality who often overdoes it, is just fine as Bernice Graves, a local television talk show host inclined to tell fabulous lies. The developing romance -- yes, that's the right word -- between April and her new mother mirrors the more traditional love affair. Mother and daughter have the same issues: to trust or not to trust, to form an immediate bond or to go slow. Their steady progress is often impeded by too much unsolicited information provided by Bernice: April, for instance, does not want or need to know that Bernice talks constantly during sex.

Salman Rushdie also makes an appearance as April's obstetrician. He is funny simply by being Rushdie. Every time. As April's husband, Broderick is the film's biggest mistake. The Ferris Bueller actor star has lost his boyish appeal, making his hold over April more baffling than anything else.