Film Review: Bridget Jones’s Baby

Our beloved Bridget is back, and what a stir she is causing yet again.

Bridget Jones was born in 1996 when Helen Fielding published her novel, Bridget Jones’s Diary. The story is a romantic comedy that provides a modern spin on Jane Austen’s prolific Pride and Prejudice.

The heroine, the 30 something year old Bridget (Renée Zellweger), seems to struggle with the everyday big questions known to all modern day western women: work, weight, friends, and even more importantly – romance.

The first film was released in 2001, and the sequel, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason in 2004. The films follow the love triangle between the fun and seductive Daniel (Hugh Grant) and the serious and intense Mark (Colin Firth) as they fight for the affection of quirky Bridget. But after a great deal of consideration, she finally settles for Mark at the end of the second film, deciding that genuine love and decency trumps excitement and superficial promises every time.

So this latest film begins with our Bridget turning 43 and once again, she is single and stressing out about how to mingle. As she ponders on the various aspects of her life, she considers getting her big Bridget pants on again and making a plan to shape her future.

Things have improved at work, with Bridget running a “top television station news place” and doing “very serious, nationally important things, you know – top journalist stuff”.

©  Universal

But with her biological clock ticking and all her mad friends striding forward on their paths of life, with husbands and other grown up stuff, Bridget worries that her hopes of a man and a baby are dwindling.

In a bid to relax her pal, Bridget’s friend, Miranda (Sarah Solemani), takes her away on a wild weekend to a music festival. And in true British fashion, Bridget has a one night stand with a rather dishy fella called Jack (Patrick Dempsey). But a few days later, naughty Bridget gives into her old feeling and also hooks up with Mark at a christening.

But oh heck, as the weeks pass by, Bridget finds out she is pregnant. And after the initial freak-out, she realises she has yet another problem on her hands. Who is the father? And how does she find out?

After speaking to the potential fathers, Bridget soon finds out they’re both delighted to be a dad and very keen to be hands on. The only problem is, she failed to mention it could be either of theirs. So once the two prospective dads find out this news, they launch a full-scale male ego war against each other to prove who the daddy really is.

So after nine months of swollen ankles, food cravings, fighting dads – oh and a deranged mother entering into politics (Gemma Jones) – Bridget finally gives birth to her baby.

But it’s been an emotional time for Miss Jones and she has lots of decisions to make. So with this new twist in her story, Bridget must find out who the real father is, pick a man to be with and decide what the next chapter in her life will look like.

I won’t give the ending away. But all I can say is, I loved it. I really felt it spoke to the modern day and expressed a healthy concept of a 21^st century family. With all the selfishness and dysfunction that can often go with today’s relationships, it was sweet to see people really working together, considering each other’s feelings and doing what is best for everyone, not just someone.

©  Universal

Overall I really enjoyed the film. I felt the first twenty minutes or so lagged a bit, lacking its typical natural comedy, but it picked up eventually. Once again, I appreciated the honesty of it all and how no matter what woman in Britain is watching it, we can all relate to some aspect of it in some way.

It was great to witness another few page’s of Bridget’s hilarious, but also very meaningful story, and I can’t wait to see what that blonde babe does next. Oh silly, silly Bridget.