'Bridget Jones: Edge of Reason' left us disappointed and yet wanting more way back in 2004. Author Helen Fielding finally gave her audience what they were craving three years ago when she published 'Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy' - but the whack job killed off Mark Darcy. Whaaaaa!? Fear not; in the third installment of the film, Mark is very much alive and well, but he has some competition.
Bridget (Renée Zellweger) is turning 43. All her friends are married and have kids, forcing single Bridget to befriend her 30-something-year-old co-workers and spend her birthday alone. At a hip music festival one weekend, Bridget engages in a one-night stand with handsome Jack (Patrick Dempsey). One week later, former flames find that spark again when Bridget and Mark fall into old habits at a Christening weekend. And thanks to a box of expired, questionable vegan condoms Bridget is now with child. But whose child? Our beloved Miss Jones now has to spend the next six months navigating pregnancy, two potential fathers, an old romance, a new romance and a budding career.
'BRIDGET JONES' BABY' TRAILER 2
First, let's address the two elephants in the room. 1) There’s no Daniel Cleaver. After Hugh Grant declared himself semi-retired from the biz, filmmakers were forced to create an entirely new third wheel to Bridget’s love life. Don’t worry, Daniel’s absence is addressed in a rather clever and humorous way. 2) Bridget is now skinny. Sure it’s a little strange that a woman in her 40s who can’t get any part of her life together has managed to slim down, but hey. With everyone so overly sensitive about body shaming these days, whether they be on the large side or the slim side, I think filmmakers are hoping everyone will just keep their mouths shut and just deal with it. But I can’t “just deal with it”. There’s no denying that Bridget’s new figure makes her seem, well, less Bridget. Her clothes, her walk, the way she holds herself, it’s just... off and not quite right. Nonetheless, Bridget and her romantic foibles, public speaking atrocities and career shenanigans are very much alive and making us laugh.
While very funny, very British and a fitting end for our little Bridget, there is an air to this final chapter that falls just shy of the original charm and vigour.
While very funny, very British and a fitting end for our little Bridget, there is an air to this final chapter that falls just shy of the original charm and vigour, which we can forgive. We’re all a little older, slower, perhaps wiser, but funny is funny and Bridget and crew will always be hilarious in the right hands. Entering into the third film in what will hopefully only be a trilogy, the odds were not in their favour. Yet bringing together a mix of old minds and new faces has made this a winner. Enjoy, my fellow Bridgetphiles - we finally got the one we’ve been waiting for.