Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Endearing Performance By Zellweger
Dissatisfied at age 32 with the direction her life is taking, a young woman vows to make some changes, and to keep herself on track she decides to start a daily journal, hoping it will make her toe the line, in "Bridget Jones's Diary," directed by Sharon Maguire and starring Renee Zellweger. Bridget (Zellweger) begins with some New Year's resolutions that include no more drinking or smoking, not being paranoid about her weight, and developing poise. And-- last, but not least-- to avoid any romantic attachments to alcoholics, workaholics, peeping Toms or perverts. Of course she promptly falls for the one man she knows who embodies all of those characteristics: Her boss, Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant). In the meantime, her mother, Pam (Gemma Jones), continues to play matchmaker for her daughter. At a holiday gathering of friends and family, Pam nudges her in the direction of an old childhood chum, Mark Darcy (Colin Firth), now a respectable attorney, and recently divorced. Their initial meeting, however, proves to be a less than monumental event, further complicated by the fact that Cleaver was Darcy's Best Man at his wedding, and has some tales-out-of-school to tell about the subsequently ill fated marriage that puts Darcy in a rather bad light. But Bridget could care less; she thinks Darcy is rude and a bore, and anyway, Daniel is her guy. Work is good, her life is going well and-- as she is about to wake up and realize-- she hasn't kept a single one of her resolutions. And, oh! she should have.First time director Maguire proves with this auspicious debut that she certainly knows her territory and how to negotiate it. She has the touch and the eye for detail of a seasoned professional, and her sense of timing is impeccable. She successfully avoids a major pitfall that do in many rookie directors right out of the chute, by never fishing for the cheap, forced, disdainfully pretentious or concocted laugh. Everything in this film, especially the humor, flows freely and naturally from the circumstances of the characters and the story, which makes it all real and believable and allows it to be readily embraced by the audience. This is a funny, often hilarious movie, but it's also very warm and at times poignant, and for handling it so sensibly, and with such sensitivity, Maguire deserves to be granted even more kudos. It's quite simply an exceptionally well made film, presented with a style and grace that reflects that of the director herself. Of course, having a superlative leading lady was certainly not disadvantageous to Maguire's efforts, either, and Renee Zellweger has never been better than she is here as Bridget. With her quirky good looks, personality and charisma, she is endearing, and she invades Meryl Streep territory by affecting a perfect British accent. Whether she's lip-syncing to a Celine Dion song, doing karaoke at an office party after having a bit too much to drink, or battling with a blender, it's easy to believe that someone would like her just the way she is. Even with her hair mussed, or in a somewhat disheveled state, she's alluring, and it all has to do with who she is deep down inside; Zellweger makes it clear that this is a woman of substance, and it's easy to like her. There's a down-to-earth honesty and accessibility about her that makes her appealing, and she's someone to whom many in the audience are easily going to be able to relate. For her portrayal of Betty in "Nurse Betty," Zellweger received a Golden Globe; "Bridget" should land her smack in the middle of Oscar territory. As Bridget's smarmy boss, Daniel, Hugh Grant turns in a noteworthy performance, putting a rather tarnished sheen on his natural charm that works so well for this character. It's a nice departure from his usual bumbling, reserved Mr. Nice Guy routine he perfected in such films as "Notting Hill," and "Four Weddings and A Funeral." With this role he challenges Greg Kinnear's part in "Someone Like You" for the top spot in the Boss-You-Should-Never-Date category. And Firth does a memorable turn as Darcy, fairly reprising his role of the same name in the PBS miniseries, "Pride and Prejudice," from which this story is loosely derived. Initially appearing a bit sullen, he gets the chance to develop his character as the story unfolds, and he does it quite nicely, ultimately revealing Darcy's true nature. In a supporting role, Gemma Jones gives a performance that deserves mention, doing a good job of fleshing out Bridget's mother in the brief time she is allotted. Rounding out the supporting cast are Crispin Bonham-Carter (Greg), Jim Broadbent (Colin Jones), James Callis (Tom), Sally Phillips (Shazzer), Honor Blackman (Penny), Embeth Davidtz (Natasha), Shirley Henderson (Jude) and Celia Imrie (Una). A warmly humorous, uplifting film, "Bridget Jones's Diary" is a delightful and satisfying experience with more than a touch of magic in it. Not only is it an entertaining showcase for Zellweger's many talents, but heralds the arrival of a director from whom we can expect great things in the future, Sharon Maguire. A well crafted, reality based comedy/drama that is enjoyable and refreshingly devoid of inane nonsense or gross jokes is a rare find these days, and this is one of the best to hit the screen in a long, long time. It's a film to be heartily embraced, and one I guarantee you'll want to see more than once.
Rating: - Don't walk, RUN to see Bridget Jones's Diary!
The only reason not to go and see Bridget Jones's Diary right now is if you don't already know the ending to Fatal Attraction. Otherwise, get your rocker off the seat and run to the cinema to watch this movie! Okay, back to critiquing the movie. It blew me away from start to finish! In the first 5 minutes I was already in tears from laughing so much. That's a new World record! This movie is flippin' funny and it knows it. The characters get in impossible situations that are very funny and simply situations that are even funnier. Renee Zellweger plays Bridget brilliantly, she splendid and gained 7kg's for the movie. Well, Renee, it was worth it. This is arguably her best performance to date, a dramatic and comic one that has had so much effort put into to it literally bursts out of the screen. Hugh Grant injects the film with a shot of bad-boy personality and Colin Firth is just great. The soundtrack is also fabulous and the miraculous one-liners are so memorable you'll be quoting them to everyone in sight! Bridget Jones's Diary is fun, clever, entertaining and frankly brilliant ' see it now!
Rating: - A must-see for all womankind...
In Bridget Jones's Diary, we are introduced to Bridget Jones, a thirty-something British woman desperately looking for love. Her co-worker and eventual love interest, played by Hugh Grant, is devilishly handsome and charmingly played by the suave Grant. Colin Firth, another Brit actor, adeptly plays a successful lawyer(?). Firth has a natural type of aloofness and pride that makes him suitable to play both this character and Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice. Both Firth and Grant contend for her affections. Renee Zellweger, ever lovable and emphatic, connects with the audience; as Jones, she portrays a size-12 smoking and drinking woman. She admirably attempts to ignore her matchmaking mother, quit her smoking and drinking, lose weight, and start a meaningful relationship. She records her social ups and downs and personal gains and losses in a diary which proves to play a key role in the movie.
The movie is filled with twists and turns and a few hilarious scenes punctuated by those more moody and dramatic. It is a light, romantic comedy which I highly recommend, especially to those of the female population. I really sympathized with Bridget and her earnest attempts to be a more contented, healty women. She showed real weakness in her diet relapses and emotional strife in the relationship with Grant. The almost cynical comedy was highly entertaining as was the fabulous performances given by the actors and actresses. The book would probably be better than the movie, but I have yet to read it. This movie is almost as good as chocolate, and that's saying something.
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