Money Well Spent!by Anonymous

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November 15, 2009: When the Bridget Jones novels were published I read them and enjoyed them. But I missed the movies in the cinema because of the busy-ness of my own real life (marriage, baby, profession). I made up for lost time when lately I was home sick for a few days and needed some distracting but not tiring entertainment. My local library lent me the first movie and I found this one at my neighborhood B&N for a great price. Even after viewing it 2-3 times, it is still funny. My husband had some good laughs from it too--it's not just a movie for women.

There are some memorable scenes (Daniel asks how well he performs in bed; Mark's initial reaction to Bridget's possible pregnancy; Bridget's unwitting trial of magic mushrooms and Bridget's arrival at the airport after her Thailand adventure--good dialogue between her and her parents.) The cast did very well: Renée Zellweger was convincing enough that I felt her emotions such as when Mark visited her in prison. Hugh Grant once again played so well the singleminded, slightly smarmy yet charming lover and Colin Firth carries on as the still-stiff Mark Darcy. Sally Phillips, James Callis, Shirley Henderson, Gemma Jones and Jim Broadbent shine as supporting cast members and I've become fans of theirs as a result of the Bridget Jones films.

Readers of the books will note that the script is not perfectly true to Helen Fielding's words but, then, movies never are. The Rebecca character in the book has been changed and split in two, in a sense, yielding Rebecca as Mark's slim assistant and Janie the Jellyfish. Fortunately, the Thai prison chapter is intact, even including the singing with makeshift microphones. My only complaint is that a few parts of the script fall a little flat in spots, such as near the end when Bridget bursts into what she thinks is Mark's office. There is perhaps too much physical comedy--poor Bridget is doused or dirtied a little more than seems fair. But she carries forth, "still perky" as she says, and gives us an entertaining film worth watching over and over. Now that I am healthy again I still enjoy it.

Included on the dvd are a handful of deleted scenes. The production values vary in their quality, naturally, as they were not included in the final cut. But they are worth viewing for the depth they add to the story, especially during the time when Bridget and Mark have broken up and their future together is uncertain. I also appreciated the director's insights and explanations of why she included what she did.

I hope the rumors are true, that there will be a third Bridget Jones film in 2011 and that the cast will remain as before with the previous films. If only they would allow Mark Darcy to relax and take off his suit more often (wet white shirt is optional).

This review was written about the DVD Wide Screen edition.

I Also Recommend: Bridget Jones's Diary, Bridget Jones's Diary, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason.

Hated the first one loved the secondby Anonymous

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November 09, 2005: This is one of the rare movies where part two is actually better than the first one. If i fall asleep on a movie during a transatlantic flight, it means its bad, really bad. I will watch anything just to pass some time. Part Two was hillarious, witty, funny and definetly a must. Yes, of course i had my husband watch it as well and can't really say if he was honest with me or not but he said he liked it. Indication that he did so ( he didn't fall asleep). Good movie...

This review was written about the DVD Wide Screen edition.