Bridget Jones's Baby

Who could dislike Bridget Jones, the crazy eccentric protagonist whose 2016 viewing, in “Bridget Jones’s Baby,” finds her back where she started: alone and single?

Stephen Holden asked in his review, “Yet you have to wonder: A decade and a half on, does Bridget still have a place in a popular culture where the carbonated dreamland of romantic comedy is hardening into a sexual battleground and the very notion of Prince Charming seems an increasingly ludicrous anachronism?”

Holden continued, “Like the recent “Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie,” or the film spinoffs of “Sex and the City,” “Bridget Jones’s Baby” trades on nostalgia for the characters’ quaint misbehavior and silly fantasies of yesteryear. Renee Zellweger, crinkly eyed and confident Bridget, still chasing what she calls “happily ever after.” But the question nags: What planet does she think he inhabits?” The London shown here might as well be Planet C, as in cute.”

In this film, directed by Sharon Maguire, from a screenplay by Helen Fielding, Dan Mazar, and Emma Thompson, Bridget is now a successful producer of a cheesy television news show. On the broadcast, Bridget is the newscaster, her friend Miranda, played by Sarah Solemani, text from the sides.

In the beginning, Bridget celebrates her 43^rd birthday with a cupcake that only has a single candle as the song All by Myself, which was in the first film, plays on the soundtrack. Holden noted, “When the music abruptly segues to House of Pain’s “Jump Around,” a lip-syncing Bridget leaps onto her bed and bounces up and down like a 7-year-old on a sugar high.” However, Bridget has grown up in one significant way: Her fascination with diet and weight loss has decreased, and finally she looks at peace with her body.

Holden said, “What follows are a series of mildly farcical misadventures that revolve around Bridget’s unexpected pregnancy after dalliances with two dreamboats who appear as if summoned by a genie.” The most unlikely, Jack, played by Patrick Dempsey, is of a dating website who pulls her out of the mud at the Glastonbury music festival, which she attends with Miranda and which the movie shows as a cheap, loud circus. The friends are so clueless about contemporary music that they don’t recognize the singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran when they ask him to take their picture.

Holden mentioned, “The other possible father is Bridget’s old flame Mark Darcy (Colin Firth), who is so dour that when he flashes a smile late in the movie you half expect a heavenly choir to erupt with hosannas. Mr. Firth’s caricature of scowling British reserve masking a tender heart is pitch perfect. Because Bridget is afraid to have the amniocentesis procedure that would reveal the baby’s paternity, the rest of the movie is a guessing game with no surprises.

When “Bridget Jones’s Diary,” the first novel in Helen Felding’s series, was published in 1996 (the screen adaptation came five years later), the term millennial had been conceived but not yet popularized. Holden said, “The new movie acknowledges generational turnover by giving Bridget a cold but kooky new boss (Kate O’Flynn) who spouts enigmatic gobbledygook in an affectedly lowbrow accent.” However, it’s not enough to make “Bridget Jones’s Baby” feel at all with today’s standards. Holden mentioned, “A welcome splash of cold water is provided by Ms. Thompson in her sensible nanny mode, playing Bridget’s unflappably severe gynecologist.”

Despite the amount of mostly warm jokes that keeps the comedic tone at a quiet boil, “Bridget Jones’s Baby” doesn’t harden. Zellweger goes through the film, charming but strangely disconnected from her men. When she finally goes into labor, she is rushed to the hospital by Jack and Mark, who carry her through the streets and brave the predictable obstacles – a traffic jam and a demonstration. In the funniest absurd moment (not very), the three are stuck in a revolving door at the hospital’s entrance.

Even though this may not be as good as the last films, it is still a good one to check out. This is currently streaming on Max, so if you have been a fan of the franchise, then you can see this one just fine. See it and give it a chance.

Next week I will be ending off “Bridget Jones’s Month” with the latest sequel that was released last month. Sorry for the late posting. I was really busy with preparing for some stuff when I came home from work.