It’s Honestly Really Nice to Get Older With Bridget Jones

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Bridget Jones has always found time slipping away since her introduction in “Bridget Jones’s Diary” (2001), where she fretted about being a potential spinster at 32, an age when many Brooklynites are still sharing flats and questioning their insurance coverage. In the sequel, she grappled with Mark Darcy’s (Colin Firth) proposal, and by the third installment, she was dealing with an unplanned pregnancy, fearing it might be her last chance at motherhood since she turned 43. Yet, despite two decades of fretting over aging, “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy” shows our disorganized protagonist having attained her traditional fairytale ending – marriage to Mark, a human rights attorney, and the shared life they built with their two children, Billy and Mabel, in North London. At 51, Bridget has achieved the milestones she once feared, but finds herself single again despite them – not due to her drinking, weight, or verbal indiscretions, which she had always believed were holding her back.

Five years prior to the movie titled “To Leslie,” directed by Michael Morris, Mark met his untimely death in a bombing incident in Darfur, leaving Bridget to mourn alone ever since. With Colin Firth making an appearance as a wistful apparition in several scenes, this unfortunate event has surprisingly benefited the franchise. Born from a nod to Jane Austen and an article in the “Independent,” Bridget Jones has historically been confined within the marriage plot. However, while matrimony was a matter of life or death for Austen’s characters, it represented something more profound for Bridget – proof that a modern woman could achieve everything, despite constantly clashing with unjust societal expectations.

While “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy” shares similarities with its predecessors, such as having Bridget sing and dance to a song (“Modern Love”) during the opening credits and finding herself torn between two suitors, what makes this film, which is inexplicably being sent directly to Peacock, so subtly satisfying is that, for once, its protagonist seems free from obligation. Bridget remains a casual mess who neglects her own grooming and continues to stumble into minor embarrassments, but her past dreams of dying alone and being consumed by a pet German Shepherd she doesn’t possess have been supplanted by the reality of a life where she yearns for companionship with someone who is no longer present.

Mad About the Boy, primarily focuses on Bridget’s personal growth rather than love triangles or typical romantic comedy antics. However, it also introduces Chiwetel Ejiofor as Scott Wallaker, a handsome yet uptight science teacher with whom Bridget has a Darcy-like conflict. Roxster serves more as a means for Bridget to rekindle her passion after feeling that her sex life had reached its end, while Scott represents an opportunity for Bridget to consider opening up her life to someone new.

In the movie “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy,” Renee Zellweger’s portrayal of Bridget may not be as vibrant as before, yet she remains endearing and capable of embodying a character who has found peace with her mistakes. One memorable scene showcases this as Bridget, back at work as a TV producer, dances joyfully to adjust the spotlight setup, reflecting her newfound comfort in her own skin.

The romantic aspects of the film are heartwarming but somewhat predictable. However, other storylines such as Bridget’s employment of an impeccably perfect nanny (Nico Parker) and a scene involving an irate neighbor (Isla Fisher) seem incomplete or underdeveloped.

What truly stands out in the film is the reunion of Bridget with her loyal friends (Shirley Henderson, Sally Phillips, and James Callis), her stern gynecologist (Emma Thompson), and of course, the return of Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant). In this role, Grant delivers a remarkable performance, stealing scenes once again. His recent roles as the Oompa Loompa and the atheist in “Heretic” have been impressive, but his reprisal of Daniel Cleaver is truly remarkable.

Daniel remains a persistent charmer and cunning rogue, retaining his good looks and charm but also acknowledging his transformation into something “slightly melancholic” due to his inability to forge lasting relationships, even with his distant son. The only exception is Bridget, with whom he shares a bond that has evolved into deep, sincere affection over time. Isn’t it remarkable to share a platonic bond with an ex-flame? Who among us can identify or empathize? Not Bridget Jones, finally liberated from being the everywoman, and now capable of loving herself truly.

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2025-02-12 14:54