Quirky little film (Bridget Jones's Diary (DVD))

Member Name: Ayesha-`

Product:	Bridget Jones's Diary (DVD)
Date:	27/11/07 (160 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Funny, girly film

Disadvantages: Girly film

I don't want to be too harsh on this film, because I thought it was lovely & it did put a smile on my face. I have to admit it has not been taken happily by all, with some fairly good reasons, but I want to highlight its good points as well.

The Story

Enter Bridget, a naive, silly but sweet girl, singing 'All By Myself'. She is worried about living her life as a spinster & tired of constant queries on her non-existent love-life & so with this in mind she is on a mission to find the perfect man. She, contrary to her own promise, decides to give her boss, Daniel, who has a reputation for being a bit of a player/chauvenist/moron etc., the benefit of the doubt. After some short skirts & e-flirting, the two seem to really hit it off. However, those very flaws she has warned herself about slowly begin to appear & she is not so sure she has made the right decision...

She then obtains the attention of Daniel's former 'friend' Darcy, but after something she had heard about him it seems she is unsure whether he even deserves a chance with her. After all, he does seem rather full of himself. Also his female partner (occupationally speaking) makes her feel rather inferior with her intelligent, classy & serious personality - where our Bridge is clumsy, playful & downrght silly at times.

She is even beginning to feel disillusioned with love - especially when she finds out her parents' marriage is on the rocks, thanks to her mother's affair with a strange tanned-orange man from a shopping tv channel. When relationships seem to be going wrong all the time & people who live together so long still feel unhappy, perhaps she is better off alone. Or will she find happiness with Daniel, Darcy, or maybe someone else?

Acting

So what made me like this film so much? Firstly I did find it quite funny. The main characters stood out & were quite memorable. Hugh Grant playing Daniel (Bridget's boss - to begin with anyway), who acts oh-so-innocent - Bridget lists a number of insults to describe what we soon learn he really is; Colin Firth's serious, poncy character Darcy - I wondered if this was actually meant to reflect the Darcy from the Pride & Prejudice novel; & Renee Zellwegger as Bridget - I thought she was fantastic & suited the English accent, despite the fact it was overly posh & quite unrealistic. Bridget's friends & family also all had their little querks (one that says the 'f' word far too much & gets a tad annoying) & individuality so that not one of them fell completely into the background.

Film Qualities

The costume design is colourful & varied. Zellweger's dress code is a key element to the film - she does wear some dreadful outfits, not to mention underwear - but she is forgiven with the help of her bubbly personality. She has some quite hideous jumpers but it is all part of the story. We also soon learn that wearing short skirts, whilst there is nothing wrong with it, should not be necessary to attract a decent man. Unfortunately there is a bit too much emphasis on clothing issues; in a way that I do not feel reflects reality anymore.

The soundtrack is lively & fun, with a variety of popular tunes, including Gabrielle's 'Out of Reach'. It is nothing spectacular, but then this film is really not designed to be overly glamorous but just simply romantic & heart warming. In a way that means it is quite cheesy but hey, it's fun.

Self help, women...

I noticed this film was the subject of discussion on a talk show a while back - about how these kinds of films can be helpful (particularly for women I suppose) for people with emotional or other problems. Personally I did find that, even though currently myself finding a man is neither on my agenda nor any of my friends' or family's, thank God. I could relate to - some - of the pickles & dodgy situations our Bridget got herself into (there are many to choose from) & although there are no solutions to life's problems on offer - you feel less of a weirdo after watching something like this & more like you can get on ok in life.

Sadly it does also have the potential to create pictures of the perfect woman or the things we should be striving for in life - perhaps more so for teenage girls looking for role models & possibly for vulnerable women. I do think, however, that when watching films like this you have to make up your own mind on how much it influences you. At the end of the day we all go through hard times & probably most people have thought at some point about the downsides of being single. This film over-emphasises them - it really isn't that bad. My advice is just enjoy the film for what it is without trying to read too much into the underlying messages. Bridget was learning to be herself - you just be yourself.

Over all

I would say in a way that the plot was not very realistic but the way it was performed made it acceptable. There are serious points & messages in the film but the general mood is light-hearted & gives you a nice warm feeling. It is cheesy but in a nice enough way & not without plenty of humour.
This film is probably less appealing to men who I think would find it harder to relate but I hope would still enjoy this film. For girls I suppose it is at least a nice film to watch one evening when nothing else is on, it will cheer you up, maybe even make you laugh, & perhaps like me you'll want to watch it again a couple of times in the future. I bought the DVD & didn't regret it. I admit I probably do come under the 'girls with low self-esteem' category but I guess there are lots more Bridgets out there that would also enjoy this film, so I will rate this a little higher for us. It is one of those films that should not be taken too seriously or read into, though, because if you do, it will disappoint.

(This is an old review from my Ciao account - but I'll probably be making changes to it soon)

Summary: A diary of a desperate girl!