“Perfect Stranger” is a perfectly ludicrous thriller about an investigative reporter (Halle Berry) pursuing a lead on an advertising executive (Bruce Willis) who may have committed murder. She poses as a temp, taking a job at his agency, and also creates a sexy on-line alias to flirt with him in chat rooms.

The computer angle is supposed to make the tale contemporary, but people have been talking dirty in cyberspace since the early 1990s. The idea that you can assume a new identity on the Internet isn’t particularly new or startling. It seems like the reporter is just creating extra work for herself cornering her target on the Web and in the office.

Layered with improbable plot twists and hypocritical commentary, the movie is lurid and outdated when it wants to be hip and provocative. Berry looks great, Willis looks tired, and neither of their characters is compelling.

Continuing her post-Oscar tailspin, Berry allows herself to be fetishized in slinky outfits and high heels, almost like “Catwoman” except here she doesn’t seem to be having fun. She’s lifeless as a lingerie mannequin.

Willis, meanwhile, currently can be seen in two bad movies at the multiplex. He has a cameo in “Planet Terror,” the Robert Rodriguez half of the “Grindhouse” double feature.

Like the stars, director James Foley has had his share of flops and successes. He helmed the dazzling “Glengarry Glen Ross” and the horrid “Who’s That Girl?” costarring Madonna and a cougar.

Berry’s character, Rowena, is a star reporter teamed with a computer expert, Miles (Giovanni Ribisi), also her drinking buddy. She gets a tip from an old friend, Grace (Nicki Aycox), who says she has proof that the head of a big time advertising firm, Harrison Hill (Willis), has been cheating on his wife with women he meets on the Internet. Days later, Grace is found murdered and Rowena is gathering info for a scoop.

The film depicts the ad executive as ruthless and two-faced, implying that phonies like him run Madison Avenue. It’s always amusing to see Hollywood pass judgment on other industries. There are references to Iraq, Hurricane Katrina and the congressional page scandal, just to create the veneer of topicality and take a few extraneous swipes at the current presidential administration.

The irony of the story is that the heroic journalist and the evil capitalist both pretend to be people they’re not. They have so many personas, online and in the real world, it’s a headache keeping track of the multiple identities. This strange, misguided movie is somehow formulaic and incoherent at the same time.

Rated: R. The film contains graphic violence, nudity, sexual content, strong language and heavy drinking. Rating: 1 out of 4 stars