A while ago I watched and very much enjoyed Bridget Jones' Diary so I was interested to see what this sequel was like. I managed to pick it up without paying anything through using my ipoints account so last night settled down to watch it and I was not disappointed.
This film has the same three main characters as were in Bridget Jones' Diary. Obviously there's Bridget (played superbly by Rennie Zellweger), Mark Darcy (great performance by Colin Firth) and the caddish Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant playing a slightly less loveable character than usual!)
Like the original, this film also charts a year in Bridget's life with more than her fair share of disasters. These include parachuting out of an aeroplane and ending up in a field of pigs, putting her foot in it and offending almost everyone at Mark's Law Society dinner and even being thrown in a Thai jail over a big misunderstanding concerning drug trafficking! It's all very far fetched but good fun at the same time. I couldn't help laughing out loud at a lot of Bridget's antics, and my husband (who was watching slightly reluctantly with me) also laughed a lot too. There are quite a few funny one liners and throw away lines which definitely make it worth a second or third watch too because I'm sure I probably missed some funny bits the first time.
The main focus of the film is Bridget's relationships with the two men in her life - Mark and Daniel. At the start of the film she is blissfully in love with Mark and all seems to be going well. However, he is a bit reserved and 'stiff upper lip' and it seems that she is a bit of an embarrassment to him. The question is whether love can conquer all these difficulties, especially when Daniel Cleaver, Bridget's former boss and love interest, appears back on the scene. As is typical in this type of film, there are lots of misunderstandings and suspicions, but they all make for good watching. I'm not going to tell you how it all ends up though - you'll just have to watch and see for yourself!
I really like Renee Zellweger's performance as Bridget. I do find myself sympathising with her over her man situation and she reminds me a little of myself in my single days (although not quite so hapless I might add). Hugh Grant and Colin Firth provide a good contrast to each other with their characters - I can't really say that I like either of them that much! There is also a great cast of minor characters. I love Bridget's rather snooty parents (played by Gemma Jones and Jim Braodbent).
Overall this is a very enjoyable and funny film although it is totally predictable. If you accept this then it doesn't matter at all. It does stand alone as a film and I don't think that you need to have watched Bridget Jones' Diary first but if you have you will obviously appreciate some of the storylines a bit better. There is also some great background music at times in the film including I'm Not In Love by 10cc and Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word by Mary J. Blige.
This film was made in 2004 and has a rating of 15 as it contains strong language, sex and drugs references. The running time is 108 minutes.
There are lots of DVD extras and these are divided in three sections - Bridget's area, Daniel's area and Mark's area which make it a bit different! I haven't watched all of these but there was an amusing 'alternative beginning' which I enjoyed and there's also a quiz called 'who's your ideal man?' to see whether you prefer Mark or Daniel - I guess this is just one for the girls! There's also something called Mark and Bridget forever? which analyses the relationship between the two and tries to work out if the relationship is blessed or doomed. They are all very entertaining!
I loved this film and it's obviously one that's more likely to appeal to the fairer sex although as I said earlier my husband also found it very funny! It's available on Amazon for onlt £3.98!
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Comedy - Director: Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Carol Cleveland, Eric Idle, Graham Chapman, Terry Gilliam, John Cleese, Michael Palin, Terry Jones
Comedy - Director: Richard Boden, Mandie Fletcher, Martin Shardlow - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Hugh Laurie, Miranda Richardson, Stephen Fry, Brian Blessed, Tim McInnerny, Tony Robinson, Rowan Atkinson
Production Year: 2004 - Comedy - Director: John Hay - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jimi Mistry, Kate Miles, Dougray Scott
Comedy - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Tessa Peake-Jones, Buster Merryfield, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst
Although it's been three years since we last saw Bridget (Renée Zellweger), only a few ... more
weeks have passed in her world. She is, as you'll remember, no longer a "singleton," having snagged stuffy but gallant Mark Darcy (Colin Firth) at the end of the 200...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Although it's been three years since we last saw Bridget (Renée Zellweger), only a few ... more
weeks have passed in her world. She is, as you'll remember, no longer a "singleton," having snagged stuffy but gallant Mark Darcy (Colin Firth) at the end of the 200...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
Having finally found the perfect man in gorgeous lawyer Mark Darcy (Colin Firth), ... more
30-something ex-singleton Bridget Jones (Renee Zellweger) is now faced with the even bigger challenge of... keeping him! When her self-doubts return and her womanising ex...
She's back! The perfect boyfriend the perfect life what could possibly go wrong? Four ... more
weeks into her relationship with Mark Darcy (Colin Firth) Bridget Jones (Renee Zellweger) is already becoming uncomfortable. With the reappearance of old flame Da...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
![Bridget Jones 2: The Edge of Reason [DVD] [2004]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78486936.jpg "Bridget Jones 2: The Edge of Reason [DVD] [2004]")
Jan 12th, 2009
very helpful by (100%):
