Bridget Jones's Diary Blu-ray Review
She's gonna make it after all.
Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman, July 16, 2011
The supposedly piquant, Latino-centric
From Prada to Nada is only one of the most recent in a long line of various adaptations of Jane Austen's
Pride and Prejudice. As I discussed in my review of that unfortunate misfire, Austen adaptations have become something of a cottage industry, with appearances of everything from more or less straightforward reworkings (the iconic Colin Firth BBC miniseries or the Keira Knightley feature film) to the ebullient Bollywood
Bride and Prejudice to the hilarious satirical miniseries
Lost in Austen to the forthcoming film version of the wonderfully titled novel
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. While some purists might aver that Austen is rolling over in her grave (repeatedly) as these supposed indignities, I personally think quite the opposite; Austen probably would have been thrilled to see the work she fought so hard to get published continuing to delight audiences in any form this many years after it was originally released. Despite this plethora of versions, probably none has caught the public consciousness quite so firmly as the completely silly but immensely enjoyable
Bridget Jones's Diary, a film which mixes a decidedly non-Austen sexual freedom with an arch and dry comic sensibility that appeals to a post-modern audience raised in an era where cynicism isn't the exclusive property of the landed gentry. Though
Diary is one of the looser adaptations of Austen's source novel, there are certainly enough threads linking it to its progenitor to make it the leader of the pack, for better or worse and at least in terms of audience appeal, of the slew of
Pride and Prejudice wannabes that have appeared with fair regularity over the past couple of decades.
This may just be an errant Y chromosome talking, and please (no, really,
please) forgive any unintended insensitivity, but there are some aspects to "female empowerment" that I frankly just do not get. When
Bridget Jones's Diary first appeared, Helen Fielding's novel was acclaimed as a beautiful piece of proto-feminist fiction, one which at last gave a voice to Everywoman, replete with all her fears and anxieties. And that same acclaim largely greeted the film version, which swept the box office and helped make Renée Zellweger a major attraction. But how does one reconcile those claims with the fact that Bridget defines
herself as a "spinster" and seems to base her entire self-worth on her ability to land a man? Isn't that everything feminists have been arguing against since the halcyon days of Betty Friedan and Gloria Steinem? It's even more perplexing when the film version of
Bridget Jones's Diary makes no bones about its populist proclivities, letting every little triumph in Bridget's burgeoning but tempestuous romantic life play out to a series of Top 40 hits which are supposedly meant to up the "feel good" ante. What it does in actuality is make Bridget the stepdaughter as it were of Mary Richards from the old
Mary Tyler Moore show, a spunky lass (and we all know some people
hate spunk) who will overcome all obstacles and find happiness in the most unlikely places. All that's missing is the toss of a British beret to complete the comparison.
Okay, that's the curmudgeonly response to aspects of
Bridget Jones's Diary that cynics may find less than appealing. But the truth is the film is enormously entertaining and often laugh out loud hilarious. I frankly have never been a huge Zellweger fan. Her countenance is an oddly sour one, as if she's either just sucked down one too many lemons or is passing an inordinately large kidney stone, and her performances can often seem mannered and overly contrived. Add to this an especially hilarious evisceration of her backstage demeanor by one Kathy Griffin (in one of Griffin's scabrous stand up television specials), and it's hard to take Zellweger as seriously as she evidently takes herself. The good news is, you don't have to take Zellweger seriously at all in
Bridget Jones's Diary, for the role is a malapropism prone buffoon who stumbles from one slaptstick conundrum to the next. And miracle of miracles, Zellweger proves herself a rather brilliant comedienne in both the verbal and physical arenas, bringing a definite believability to the character of Bridget despite the cartoonish ambience of much of the film.
The original Fielding novel spent a great deal of time dealing with Bridget's fascination with Colin Firth in the BBC miniseries version of
Pride and Prejudice, and of course it's one of
Bridget Jones's Diary's casting coups that Firth is on hand playing an updated version of Darcy. He's curiously restrained in this film, even a bit more than your typical, "historically accurate" Darcy. That leaves most of the comic fireworks to play out between Zellweger and Hugh Grant as the womanizing cad for whom she works, at least in the first half of the film. The chemistry between all three of these stars is palpable and helps to cement
Bridget Jones's Diary's entertainment value. But it's actually some of the supporting roles, notably Gemma Jones as Bridget's dotty mother who becomes a helpmate on a sort of QVC shopping channel, where some of the film's biggest laughs originate.
This is one of those films that seems preternaturally ordained to appeal to women, though men will probably find a lot to enjoy in it as well. If any of you guys have that same errant, questioning Y chromosome, take some advice and just keep your yap shut if your wife or girlfriend wants you to watch
Bridget Jones Diary. There are certainly worse fates, and as some wise man once said, discretion is the better part of valor.
Bridget Jones's Diary Blu-ray, Overall Score and Recommendation
Guys, take some advice from someone who's made it through around two decades of married bliss (and I mean that, seriously I do): when your wife or girlfriend takes a look at Colin Firth and emits a long sigh, whispering, "Isn't he
dreamy?", simply fight any urge to make a disparaging, ironic or satiric comment. You'll be happier for it, believe me, though your tongue may be permanently scarred from having to bite down so hard on it. My wife watches
Bridget Jones's Diary at least once a year and gets an immense kick out of it every time, and it obviously provides her a level of romantic storybook happiness, and that's fine with me. Guys may not exactly swoon for Firth (or Grant, for that matter), but the film is undeniably engaging and is undoubtedly funny enough to not be thought of exclusively as a chick flick. This Blu-ray looks manifestly better than the DVD and sounds spectacular, and comes
Recommended.
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