She’s a two-time Academy Award winning actress (Cold Mountain, Judy) but when it comes to Renée Zellweger’s filmography, the character she’s (arguably) best known for is Bridget Jones.  Adapted from the novels of Helen Fielding, the series began in 2001 and was followed by further instalments in 2004 and 2016.  Bridget’s romantic calamities have been popular with the three movies grossing more than $750 million USD at the global box office.

There’s a plethora of returning characters for Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy (it’s like an episode of This is Your Life) but the noticeable absentee is her husband, Mr Darcy.  We learn during the introduction that he was killed 4 years ago while on a humanitarian mission in Sudan.  In the aftermath, the now 50-something-year-old Bridget became a stay-at-home mum looking after her two primary school-aged children.  The self-pity is evident.  She refers to herself as “asexual” given a non-existent love life and whines every time it’s suggested she get out of the house and socialise.

She’s become more reclusive in nature but the world around Bridget is the same as it’s always been.  Whether it be family, friends or colleagues, everyone is offering advice on how Bridget should live her life.  The conversation almost always turns to men and sex.  It’s reached the point where a close friend has signed her up to Tinder (without telling her) and, when she rocks up a work with a beaming smile one day, co-workers are asking whether she recently got laid.  It’s a bit weird (not sure I could get away with it in my own workplace) but it’s just how things work in Bridget’s comical, soap opera-like ecosphere.

With Bridget now a single widow, the stage is set for the three-person screenwriting team to introduce a group of potential suitors.  Hugh Grant (Heretic) reprises his role as the womanising Daniel Cleaver and while there are times when he’s as slimy as ever, there’s now a softer side shining through.  Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave) is a science teacher at the children’s school with differing views when it comes to religion and the afterlife.  Leading the candidates is Leo Woodall (One Day) as a 29-year-old biochemistry student with a chiselled body but the significant age gap creates mental hurdles.

Several subplots get no time to breathe (Colin Firth’s odd bedtime cameo, Hugh Grant’s estranged son, Isla Fisher as the next-door neighbour) and while it’s a bit all-over-the-place at times, there’s enough humour and charm to make Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy a success.  Yeah, her life is one exaggerated misadventure after the other (e.g. buying condoms, undermining the babysitter) but Zellweger makes her a likeable person regardless.  There’s also a “heart” to Bridget Jones which becomes more evident in the film’s second half.

Released in Australian cinemas the day before Valentine’s Day, director Michael Morris (Better Call Saul) has delivered an entertaining film to fit with the occasion and audience’s expectations.