It's hard to believe the co-creator of Yes, Minister was the optimum choice for this comedy about a Deep South gospel choir. Yet even if Jonathan Lynn is au fait with the milieu, he's rarely in control of the tone or pacing of this messy amalgam of African-American social attitudes and musical tastes. Cuba Gooding Jr clowns to excess as the cynical ad executive determined to galvanise the choristers at his aunt's church in order to inherit her fortune. But the diverse singing styles of Melba Moore, T-Bone and Beyoncé Knowles, and a feisty turn from LaTanya Richardson, provide some compensation.

Darrin Hill, a slick-talking but down-on- his-luck NYC advertising exec, returns to his hometown in Georgia to claim the inheritance his aunt left him. But before Darrin can collect the money, he must fulfill his aunt's final wish -- to create a local choir.