Screenwriting Hits Rock Bottom

I don't know if any of you have seen previews for the romantic drama "Lake House" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0410297/ starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock. The basic plot is as follows: A man and a woman searching for love fall in love by exchanging love letters with each other over a significant time period. Thus far, a pretty typical plot line for a 21st century "chick flick". But as with any "chick flick" there's an extraordinary twist intended to grip the female viewer and leave them emotionally spent by the end of the movie, thoroughly cashing several hundred kleenexes in the process.

The twist in the new film "Lake House" is that the transfer of love letters between Sandra Bullock and Neo transcends the boundary of time. They're in love, so in love, but there's only one problem, one tragic aspect of this story that keeps the two lovers apart: They're living in different times. They send love letters to each other through a "magical" mailbox that can deliver letters 2 years into the past or 2 years into the future and everything would be perfect if it wasn't for the INHERENT UNIVERSAL DIMENSION OF TIME!

This is out of control. It signals to me that the writers of films like "Message in a Bottle" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0139462/ have simply run out of ideas that are even remotely feasible. Unfortunately, there is a decent chance that tomorrow, when "Lake House" is released in theatres nationwide, someone will see it.