Theory about slightly off 'British' or 'English' nuance

I think it is interesting that so many people on these boards from the UK have such different reactions to whether the film gets England or London or Britishness correct. Gwyneth's accent, her slang, etc. -- people from London are all over the map on whether this movie gets it right or gets it all wrong...

I watched it when it first came out in the US where I'm from and liked the gimick of the two plot lines -- I've often thought about "what if" at key points in my life, and enjoyed watching the two plots unfold.

But, having watched the film again after having lived in the UK both before the film was released and more recently, I have a theory about what's so odd about the film. I think it is an obvious attempt to be a London/English version of a film like "When Harry Met Sally" WHMS makes NYC looks so clean and shiny and easy to navigate, and the characters are all witty and the scenes revolve around quotable quotes etc. In other words, I think this film is trying to appeal to an American-style of humour and an American-style "lifestyle" fantasy -- and I think it kind of fails as a result. The "wit" is less witty, because it is kind of a hybrid. In fact, lots of the scenes are cringe-worthy (the Monty Python stuff just ridiculous, the Father Abraham dance inexplicable to me). There's a difference between British humour and American humour -- I like both. But this is a mash up and kind of falls flat.

Also, I think it is a mashup that's meant to appeal to an American audience's preconceptions about London and the English. One scene in particular is what struck me: where the restaurant patron flirts with sad-Gwyneth. I always hated that scene -- her snarky comment about the B J is so out of line with what was a relatively mild come-on. And the guy who plays the part has this accent like he's out of a Beatles video or something. It's like the scene is trying to hard -- the Sally orgasm scene so to speak -- but with characters who really aren't typical London c. 1998, but typical London according to American pre-conceptions (Monty Python, the word "shag" and "wanker" etc.) The fact that the writer and director is from London means that it has to have been on purpose -- it's not like he wouldn't know that the slang was slightly off etc...It's being played up, as a marketing technique.