“Bridget Jones, it’s time to live.”
The favorite frazzled pseudo-Englishwoman Bridget Jones, played by UT alumna Renée Zellweger, returns for a fourth addition to the Bridget Jones’ Diary series of raunchy British romantic comedies. However, this time around, she has to navigate the death of her husband, raising two kids and a love interest nearly 20 years her junior. “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy,” a Peacock Original, contains less diary-keeping than the previous but no shortage of bold statements.
In “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy,” directed by Michael Morris and released Feb. 13, Jones finds herself in a whole new, and rather depressing, state of life. She lives as a widowed, single, unemployed mom at the mercy of the unsolicited advice from everyone around her. After getting sick of people’s constant pity and always feeling like a deflated balloon, Jones decides to live instead of survive.
Starting over 20 years ago, every new Bridget Jones movie not only gives audiences a look into Jones’ dramatic and messy fictional world but also a time capsule of the state of popular culture. Many aspects of the film feel reminiscent of the golden era of rom-coms from which it was born — with lovably flawed side characters and beaus amidst unrealistically well-decorated backdrops. In the new installment, Jones tackles many modern references such as the climate crisis, dating apps, and, most importantly, hagmaxxing — a phenomenon referring to younger men pursuing romantic relationships with older women.
“Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy” contributes to a string of recent films in which middle-aged actresses share steamy romances with young men, including Anne Hathaway’s “The Idea of You” and Nicole Kidman’s “Babygirl.”
As Jones’ 29-year-old lover, who the writers had the audacity to name Roxster, played by Leo Woodall, says while they share drinks at a bar, “Ever so slightly older women have a wiser view on life. They’re more experienced and more emotionally mature.”
Despite the noble mission Hollywood undertook to convince middle-aged women that hope still remains for their love life, the pairing understandably feels a little awkward and unbelievable. But it wasn’t only Jones’ relationship with Roxster that felt forced. So did her end-game relationship with Mr. Wallaker, played by Chiwetel Ejiofor. While attempting to mimic the classic enemies-to-lovers trope, Jones’ relationship progression with Wallaker seems like a brief sidenote to the real juju of the film’s romantic appeal. The ultimate profession of love between the two doesn’t quench the audience’s thirst for heart-wrenching and convincing passion.
Nevertheless, “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy,” with its somewhat forced narratives and underdeveloped romances, still presents a simultaneously unrestrained and delightfully funny, feel-good-indulgent romantic comedy that won’t disappoint loyal Bridget Jones followers.
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