Poor young Maya (Abigail Breslin) is having a difficult day. Her Manhattan public school just implemented a sexual education program, opening up a world of questions she’s not ready to answer. She’s still coming to terms with her parents’ pending divorce. Convinced she needs to get to the bottom of their crumbling relationship, Maya asks her father, Will (Ryan Reynolds), to tell her how he and her mother met. “It’s complicated,” he offers, desperately avoiding the difficult task.

He isn’t exaggerating. And while Will’s story has more levels than a New York skyscraper, the pleasure comes in his romantic recounting as “Definitely, Maybe” cruises along.

Writer-director Adam Brooks turns his clock back to 1992 to explain how Will, a gopher on Bill Clinton’s first presidential campaign, met Maya’s mom. The film has fun guarding its slight riddle regarding her identity, presenting three winsome women who could be “the one.” Is it Emily (Elizabeth Banks), the wholesome college sweetheart Will left in Wisconsin? Could it be Emily’s longtime friend Summer (Rachel Weisz), a budding journalist languishing in a dead-end affair with a burned-out politico (Kevin Kline, amusing in a beefed-up cameo role)? Finally, there’s a chance Maya’s mom will end up being April (Isla Fisher), the playful, noncommittal copy girl whose tender heart is always just out of Will’s reach.

Brooks built his career writing romantic comedies such as “French Kiss” (with Kline), “Wimbledon” and the “Bridget Jones” sequel. He takes a novel approach to what amounts to a familiar tale, framing “Maybe” as a bedtime story Will tells to Maya. Reynolds has never been more appealing as a father to Breslin and an affable romantic lead to his three gorgeous (and lovable) co-stars.

“Maybe” will sprinkle its pixie dust over anyone who took their own circuitous path to true love. Brooks detours down a few alleys of his own, though these asides give “Maybe” some unanticipated flavor. He approaches “Maybe” like Woody Allen’s cousin twice removed, letting the funky, comfortable heartbeat of New York City provide a suitable rhythm for his work.

“Maybe” is a pastiche, a quilted concoction of stories that make up one man’s love life. Because I thought I knew how it would end, I let my guard down and was completely surprised by the sweet, happy ending, which Brooks and his cast definitely earned.