What a joy laden movie. This could just be the best of the four Bridget Jones films, that date back to 2001 and we have had to wait nine years since the last one.
Mad About the Boy, which Jones also narrates, is filled with laughter, romance and reverence.
Best of all, she (Renee Zellweger) gets to be a cougar, with a toy boy hot to trot for her.
So, to the story.
Her husband, the love of her life, Mark Darcy (Colin Firth), is no longer.
He was killed in an explosion while on a humanitarian mission in Darfur four years earlier, leaving Bridget as a widow, with two small children to raise.
She still dreams of Mark and misses him terribly, as do the kids, 10-year-old son Billy (Casper Knopf) and daughter Mabel (Mila Jankovic), 6.
Her life though is chaotic and she hasn’t moved on.
Most of her friends tell her she desperately needs a shag.
So, one day she decides to try to take control of her own future.
With a choice description, one of her besties even signs her up to a dating app.
But it is while trying to rescue her children from the branches of a large tree in a park that fortune really smiles upon her.
That is when she, and they, are rescued by a handsome groundkeeper in his late 20s, Roxter McDuff (Leo Woodall), who later texts her.
Suddenly, everything is looking up, including the fact that Jones has reclaimed her old job (she hadn’t been working) as a television producer.
Also in the picture is Jones’ male pal and former lover, the lascivious Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant).
And that is not to overlook a new science teacher at the school that Billy and Mabel attend.
Scott Wallaker (Chiwetel Ejiofor) has a distinct way of rounding up children before school to ensure they are on time.
Helen Fielding, who wrote the book Bridget Jones’s Diary, which was the starting point for the film franchise, has also had a big hand in writing all the film scripts.
Also back on the writers' desk is Dan Mazer, who co-wrote Bridget Jones’s Baby, with Abi Morgan also playing a hand in this one.
Collectively, they have done a terrific job. Many of the sight gags and one liners are priceless.
Each Bridget Jones’ film has a different director. This time it is Michael Morris, who takes to the task with relish, injecting a great deal of feeling.
As for the cast, they are in fine form and what a formidable group of actors they are too.
With Jones never taking herself too seriously and primarily upbeat, Zellweger is delightful and assured as the film’s centrepiece.
Grant is in his element as the gleefully inappropriate Daniel Cleaver.
Leo Woodall says and does all the right things as Roxter McDuff, while Chiwetel Ejiofor is intelligent and responsible as Mr Wallaker.
Emma Thompson is flawless as Jones’ friend and gynaecologist.
Isla Fisher makes sure she is noticed as a harried mother and neighbour, in a memorable cameo.
And on it goes, because there are so many juicy parts in this offering.
One thing is for sure. Mad About the Boy outshone my expectations.
I was worried about the filmmakers going back to the well … again. I needn’t have fretted because, truth be told, I really enjoyed myself.
The movie hangs together beautifully and puts a big smile on your face. Who could ask for more?
Rated M, it scores an 8 out of 10.
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