Bridget Jones's Diary

Rating:
Summary: Highly over-rated
Review: Obviously there's no accounting for taste. How and why so many people spoke well of this movie is very puzzling to me. The story is [bad], beginning with the fact that the story-teller first convinces us how empty Bridget's life is, then has someone fall in love with her without identifying why and which qualities in her he admired, or even exist.

The story is thin, the acting weak. I don't understand why the British were upset that an American actress played the lead role...

Rating:
Summary: barely Average
Review: having watched this film recently i was told that Zellweger was doing a British Accent&that alone got my attention.first of all just like Hugh Grant I Find Him&Her 3rd Tier Actors.neither too me can carry a film&this is living proof.this film has some ok moments but the cliche Songs that Pump up Zellweger makes this film another Average film at best.it just didn't really move me.

Rating:
Summary: Heart Warming
Review: This is a heart warming romantic comedy. I fell in love with Colin Firth. Renee Zellweger really hit home in her diary. I think she is one of the best all round actresses working today. Absolutely loved it.

Rating:
Summary: Great Movie!
Review: I really liked this movie. I haven't read the book, but now I plan to. Renee was great as Bridget, and I can most definitely identify somewhat w/ Bridget, except for the drinking. lol! The reason I gave it four stars, rather than five was because, 1-Colin Firth character, Mark, wasn't in it enough, for me to really get a feel for his character--not sure how much he's in the book though, and 2-Renee gained 20 pounds for the movie, I really want to know where. lol! You can tell in her face that she gained weight, but the weight on her body looked just right for her. I think she needed a few more pounds on her body as Bridget--that's the consensus I've been getting from people who have read the book. But all in all, I really enjoyed the movie, and will watch it over and over. It's now in my top list of favorite films. :)

Rating:
Summary: Very Good Romantic Comedy
Review: This is a very good movie. If you liked Pride and Prejudice, you will like Bridget Jone's Diary. Very well acted. However, you must be intelligent to like the movie and also be a romantic. You will enjoy it!!

Rating:
Summary: One of the best comedy films for some time.
Review: Bridget Jones's Diary was one of the best films of 2001, and genuinely funny: that is the big difference between the modern American teen flicks which try hard to be funny, and this film which is effortlessly hilarious. Renee Zellweger was a surprising choice to play the completely English and dumpy Bridget, but she pulls it off brilliantly, particularly with the dull middle-class English accent which is very realistic. Bridget is 32, overweight, underpaid, and without a boyfriend. The flim, through the eyes of her diary, follows her amusing attempts to shape up, and get a man. In fact, she gets two men; her swarmy boss Daniel Cleaver, and a lawyer who she has known and detested from the age of five, Mark Darcy. Hugh Grant is wonderful as the slimy but irresitable Cleaver, and Colin Firth just as good as the slightly abrupt and reticent Darcy. There are good cameos from Jim Broadbent as Bridget's bumbling but likeable dad, and Gemma Jones as her snobbish mum. There are even surprise cameos from Jeffrey Archer and Salman Rushdie, both playing themselves. This cocktail makes for a most enteraining movie. There is emotion and seriousness in the right places, but lighter moments are never far away. The film will probably appeal particularly to younger women, but there is plenty in there for everyone, mainly because the film produces so many wonderful human charactitures. It's well worth buying, and bringing out over Christmas and when friends and family come round. If nothing else, the music soundtrack is brilliant.

Rating:
Summary: A winning adaptation of a wonderful book
Review: Like many others, I was unhappy when I heard that Texan Renee Zellweger was cast as Bridget Jones. How was a svelte American supposed to play the beloved, blubbery, British Bridget? But Zellweger carries off the role beautifully. She's not afraid to seem as awkward, as perpetually embarrassed and as chubby as the book Bridget.

To those unfamiliar with the plot, here's a summary: Bridget is a thirtysomething Brit who struggles with her weight and her dead-end job -- as well as her lust for office scoundrel Daniel (Hugh Grant). Her overbearing mother keeps trying to set her up with Mark Darcy (Colin Firth from the BBC "Pride and Prejudice"), whom Bridget despises.

The plot bears a vague resemblance to "Pride and Prejudice" overall -- making Firth's casting rather clever, especially given Bridget's obsession with him in the second book, "Edge of Reason."

As in "Pride and Prejudice," our heroine discovers that the handsome, charming man is not quite what he seems -- and neither is the proud, arrogant one.

The dialogue here is clever and the acting is superb. This is one of those rare chick flicks that overcomes its genre on the strength of its humor: My boyfriend was playing a football game on his computer while this was on, and he had a hard time pretending he wasn't watching!

Rating:
Summary: Zellweger v.v. bad.
Review: I'm a native Texan living in Britain. Trust me, we don't blend. Not even when we're putting on the most ridiculous, toe-curling English accent imaginable, like Zellweger did. I remember stories in the press about her "blending in" at a London publishing house. Americans aren't aware of this, but London publishing houses are full of obnoxious twits who are ALL putting on a posh accent, so they probably thought Zellweger was some lass from the Midlands trying to sound rich.

The film itself is not nearly as good as the book. The book revolved around Bridget as well, but not to the extent that this film does. It revolves around Bridget to the exclusion of all others. This is why in the film her reasons for falling in love with Colin Firth's character are incomprehensible. Firth and Hugh Grant were spot-on as their respective characters, the anal retentive barrister and the womanizing boss, but Zellweger's hammy performance ruins the entire movie. I may be mistaken, but the impression I get from the film is that we are supposed to be sympathizing with Bridget and rooting her on. I personally got a lot of enjoyment watching her fall on her face, arse, and other body parts. I wanted her to fail, not to succeed. That is how hateful Zellweger's Bridget was. Also, I don't see how I'm supposed to believe for an instant that Bridget is overweight. In the book, she got up to about 140 pounds. Zellweger at her heaviest still looks to be about 10-15 pounds off the mark. The frumpy Bridget from the book is nothing like the stick-thin Bridget that Zellweger presented us with. She has agreed to do the second film but has refused to gain 20 pounds again to play the character, which will ruin the character still further.

Other faults with the film:

1.) Cameos by famous British authors. STOP IT.

2.) Not nearly enough Perpetua.

3.) Vile Richard did not even appear on screen.

4.) Bridget is rich. I don't feel sorry for the wealthy.

5.) Bridget is a drunk. Drunks are pathetic.

I thoroughly enjoyed both books, but I was not impressed by this film with its poor character development, laughable script, and slapdash, ham-handed performance by Zellweger. Someone ought to tell Americans to STOP TRYING TO SOUND ENGLISH. The British press did not heavily criticize Zellweger's accent, but I think that was only because they didn't want to hurt her feelings.

Bleccccccccccccccccch.

Rating:
Summary: Cute
Review: This was a cute film about a hapless, 30-something singleton trying to make her way in the world. I can relate to the main character on many levels, with the exception of the weight thing. I workout 4-5 days a week and wear a size 8. Nonetheless, the title character didn't look all that big to me. I think it's a sad commentary on society when a perfectly average-looking size 12 woman is considered chubby. That aside, the film is dead-on accurate in its portrayal of some of the self-destructive things that we females can sometimes do to ourselves -- the chain smoking, the excessive drinking, the binging and let me not forget the bad habit of hooking up with unsuitable men. In many ways this movie holds a mirror up to how some of us really live, which is markedly different from what we would have others believe. Not all single women are living like the gals on "Sex And the City." Some of us are quite ordinary and clueless -- but not me of course. 8-)

Zellweger is convincing as the earnest, if clumsy, Bridget. This is a physical comedy complete with many pratfalls and sight gags -- I was in stitches at the sight of those big ole granny panties that she chose instead of that little black thong. And who could forget her television debut that showed her entire butt the world after she slid down a pole?

I have to admit that ending surprised me because I thought that Mark was gone for good after he (rather nosily!) read some of our heroine's cutting remarks about him in her diary. But Bridget ran after him into the cold night, wearing next to nothing, and gets the surprise of her life. Ah, I am a sucker for a story with a happy ending. Some viewers complained that the movie implied that Bridget felt incomplete without a man, however, that is not my take on it. She wanted him, and he reciprocated her feelings. What's so bad about that? Further, I think that most of us desire companionship and spend quite a bit of time pursuing it and/or lamenting the lack thereof. It's not like Bridget closed herself off from the world and put her life on hold until Prince Charming arrived. True she did look in the wrong places and did wallow a bit in self-pity, but I think she was getting it together toward the end. At the very least, she was not afraid to make herself vulnerable even when she had plenty of reason to be gun-shy. And if that isn't courageous, then I don't know what is. I enjoyed this movie about an average Jane determined to proceed through life despite the occasional pitfall. That's all that any of us can do.

Rating:
Summary: More fun than a turkey curry buffet (if that's possible!)
Review: This film is an adaptation of the book of the same name (unread by me), the story of a 30-something single woman trying to find love, confidence, and possibly a better job in the Big City (in this case, London). Instead, she finds Hugh Grant, playing her sleazy boss, and Colin Firth, son of family friends who is an uptight and smug barrister. Naturally, she chooses the sleazy boss first, then we follow her through a career change, a boyfriend change, multiple lifestyle changes (or, at least, attempts thereof), all accompanied by her loyal and equally single friends.

This sounds like a very formulaic film, but the quirky character of Bridget Jones is carried off wonderfully by (the initially thought to be oddly cast) Renee Zellweger, who is a thin Texan playing a chubby Brit. Zellweger really gets into the role, including gaining 20 (?) pounds. Grant and Firth are equally well cast as the competing suitors; Grant as the sleaze has more fun and juicier lines. In all, it is very funny, and quite universal - I'm sure audiences in America and Australia will enjoy it just as much as audiences in Britain.

The DVD edition is quite nice, with a short making-of documentary (that thankfully is not simply an extended trailer), some cut scenes (some of which are a loss to the film, but others were rightfully cut), a couple music videos (not particularly interesting), and, of course, a director's commentary. This commentary is pretty good, from first-time director Sharon Maguire, with tidbits on the actors, comments on how the film diverges from the novel, etc.

The only problem is the ending - there are simply too many false crises delaying the happy ending that we know is coming. Other than that, it's a well-plotted and funny romantic comedy.