Bridget Jones's Diary (2001)

Bridget Jones's Diary (2001)

7/10

Starring

Renée Zellweger

Hugh Grant

Colin Firth

Directed by Sharon Maguire

Here’s a movie that has spawned two follow-up sequels, and in each one, it delivers a punch of masterful acting from Renée Zellweger.
Based on a 1996 book of the same name by Helen Fielding, the movie explores the life of Bridget Jones (Renée Zellweger) as she decides to take control of her life and make a dramatic turnaround.
Before we dive into the full plot, keep in mind that Renée Zellweger gained weight to make this performance memorable. In Bridget’s whole turnaround, there’s just a little, not-so-significant weight loss.

The plot shows how Bridget, after overhearing how people perceive her, decides to stop her carefree, overweight lifestyle and take control of herself. She’s naturally clumsy, accident-prone, and struggles with self-esteem issues because of her weight. When she decides to make a change, it’s her view of herself that shifts, and it’s that newfound confidence that drives the whole movie.

In Bridget’s life, there are two men. The first is Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant), her boss, whom Bridget is obsessed with and has fantasies about. The other man is Mark Darcy (Colin Firth), whom Bridget meets at a New Year’s party hosted by her parents. She and Mark knew each other as children.

Their initial meeting after all these years isn’t the best. She dislikes him because she sees him as arrogant, and he dislikes her because, to him, she’s just a bumbling idiot.

After making the tough decision to take control of her life, Bridget starts flirting with her boss, Daniel. Daniel is a notorious womanizer who only sees her as his next conquest.
Bridget later finds out that Daniel and Mark know each other. Daniel tells her that Mark once hurt him in the past. He explains that their friendship was ruined when the quiet but deadly Mark ended things by sleeping with Daniel’s then-fiancée.

The chase begins: Daniel wants Bridget, while Mark, who couldn’t care less about Bridget at first, finds himself caught in the middle. Bridget wavers between wanting Daniel and then Mark, while Mark pursues another woman he wants to move on with.

This romantic movie trumps a lot of other romantic films. It takes control of its path, and many times, things shift from the straight and narrow to the confused and distorted.
The movie was a critical and commercial success, which led to a sequel, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004) and another after that in 2016, Bridget Jones’s Baby.