Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy Review – The Best Diary Entry Yet

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How does the life of romantic comedy characters unfold once they leave their typical love stories behind and face reality with their ideal partner? In its exceptional fourth installment, the “Bridget Jones” series skillfully combines elements of delightful romantic escapism with an in-depth examination of what happens post the supposedly perfect ending.

As a gamer, I’d say: “Just like in some video games, you don’t expect ‘Bridget Jones’ movies to be realistic, but ‘Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy’ knows what its predecessors missed – that even the most unrealistic storylines can feel relatable if they serve as a form of emotional release for the protagonist and the audience. Previously, Renee Zellweger’s character strained credulity as a love interest to the glamorous leading men, often portrayed in ways that didn’t do Bridget justice, making her either forgettable or off-putting. However, this time, the movie focuses on keeping things grounded. Bridget’s romantic adventures remain typical romcom fare, but from the moment she appears on screen as a relatable everywoman dealing with emotional struggles, it becomes easier to immerse yourself in the cinematic experience.

Bridget gets better with age

The story unfolds four years after the demise of Bridget’s husband, Mark Darcy (played by Colin Firth). Pretending to be happy as a single mother, Bridget finds herself left behind by life. Encouraged by friends, she decides to return to work and venture into dating again. Upon joining Tinder, she encounters a younger man named Roxster (Leo Woodall), while her duties as a mother keep her closely connected to Mr. Wallaker, their children’s strict teacher (played by Chiwetel Ejiofor). Fortunately, the film steers clear of presenting this narrative as a love triangle for most parts, and even manages to delay discussions on age gap until it becomes inevitable.

As Bridget Jones matures over time, her character becomes more believable and relatable. Initially introduced in the 2001 film “Bridget Jones’s Diary,” which was a contemporary twist on Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice,” she appeared somewhat outdated and predictable. However, as society evolved, it became necessary to accept that women in their early 30s could choose to remain single. The sequel, “Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason” (2004), lost some goodwill due to its need to be funnier and bigger, making Bridget seem less relatable, more socially awkward, and childish. When she returned in “Bridget Jones’s Baby” (2016), a new team of writers, including Emma Thompson, updated the character for modern audiences by finding humor in a high-concept similar to “Mamma Mia,” while also tackling the serious issue of a woman in her 40s wanting to be a mother. This portrayal served as a precursor to what “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy” (2019) achieved, aiming to explore the anxieties and challenges faced by women in middle age while providing a comforting escape from harsh realities. The film’s exaggerated highs feel satisfying because it manages to create a palatable reality in its heroine’s low moments.

As a gamer, I can’t help but appreciate how skillfully this movie reimagines its recurring characters, like the charismatic rogue Daniel Cleaver, played by Hugh Grant. It’s as if they’ve brought him back from the dead in the most unbelievable of scenarios. Today, we’re blessed to witness Grant masterfully twisting his silver-screen image, using his natural allure to portray both comical villains (“Paddington 2”) and genuinely menacing ones (“Heretic”). Yet, it takes real courage to see him do the same while still staying true to his romantic comedy roots. In just a handful of scenes, Grant manages to make you feel the years of decay in Daniel Cleaver – a womanizer who stubbornly refuses to mature, turning into the creepy old man cornering every party. He avoids making him a one-dimensional caricature, instead trying to find genuine emotion in the story of a man-child unwilling to grow up, clinging onto memories of his past glory so tightly he hasn’t even updated his cellphone from two decades ago.

There’s tragedy beneath the romance

In 2013, Helen Fielding released “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy” as the third book featuring Bridget Jones, causing quite a stir in Britain with its surprising revelation that Mark Darcy, Bridget’s lawyer love interest, perished by a landmine in Sudan soon after their supposedly happy ending. The film adheres to the main plotline but lacks the original novel’s humorous edge; this adaptation, co-written by Fielding herself, intends to delve into the depth of Bridget’s grief, given that her real-life husband passed away from cancer following the book’s publication. The initial part of the movie focuses on Bridget’s inertia as she reaches the fourth anniversary of her husband’s demise, living contentedly as a single mother of two and avoiding both employment and the dating scene – she seems stuck rather than unable to move past her grief, having accepted that her life feels incomplete.

Film director Michael Morris, renowned for episodes of “Better Call Saul” and the unconventional Oscar contender “To Leslie,” might not seem an obvious choice for this material at first glance. Yet, he skillfully unearths a poignant human sadness beneath genre trappings, as effectively in a romantic comedy as in a legal thriller featuring the Cartel. The film doesn’t introduce any revolutionary visual themes; instead, Morris caters to the popcorn expectations of his audience through montage and spectral dream sequences, effectively portraying a woman’s feelings of her life slipping away.

The drama is well-balanced, making us cheer for the seemingly too-good-to-be-true fairytale romances when Bridget encounters two younger, more attractive suitors subtly modeled after the original love triangle. However, the film avoids getting overly immersed in the fantasy. For every scene that leans into wine mom wish fulfillment — such as Leo Goodall emerging shirtless from a pool, having saved a puppy no less, to kiss Bridget in front of an amazed crowd — there are many that resist the allure of escapism.

The pair’s first intimate scene is unusual for this franchise, acknowledging the complexities of a single mother’s sex life — her children’s toys still scattered on the bed — and the need to balance it with her responsibilities. The film doesn’t reduce Bridget to a stereotype or force her to choose between her personal life and her duties; instead, it reflects the cliché that yes, a woman can have it all.

In essence, the proof that “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy” is effective lies in its ability to skillfully employ familiar genre cliches. Despite being labeled as ‘wine mom cinema’, it manages to deliver a subtle bittersweet flavor with every scene, balancing each whimsical peak with a dose of melancholy.

“Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy” hits Peacock on February 13. 

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2025-02-12 12:30