Cute Romantic Comedy

Rating: 8/10 (15 June 2002)

I really enjoy this movie. We first see 32 year old Bridget Jones (Renee Zellweger)at her mother's annual turkey curry buffet. We see some of the main people in her life, her parents, her "uncle" Jeffrey (How many of us have had an "uncle Jeffrey in our lives that we've had to endure, because it's just "harmless fun", raise your hand), and Mark Darcy (played by Colin Firth), a divorced lawyer who his and Bridget's parents are trying to get together.
Unfortunately, their first meeting gets off on the wrong foot, and Bridget spends that night drinking herself silly, alone in her apartment, listening and air-voicing to "All by Myself". However, she decides to keep a diary. In her first entry she resolves to find a good man, and avoid her attractive boss, Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant).
However, he starts making suggestive sexual innuendos to her, and, enjoying the attention, she starts dressing in a miniskirt and see-through top, and passing silly, flirtatious e-mails back and forth. She seeks advice from her 3 best friends on how to handle this. This sequence events leads to a purely sexual relationship between Daniel and Bridget, although Bridget is a bit too naive and insecure to really see this.
We learn that Daniel and Mark are archenemies due to some events in the past which led to Mark's wife leaving him. Also, because Mark and Bridget often travel in the same circles, we do learn that Mark's opinion of Bridget has quickly changed. From the look on his face, it's easy to see that he now likes her (Hmmm shades of Mr Darcy in Pride and Prejudice)
Anyay, Bridget eventually catches Daniel with another woman, and once again she is alone, and decides to seek another job as a television reporter. Mark rescues Bridget from being canned from her job, by allowing her an interview with people he was defending in a high profile case. After this Bridget tries to cook a dinner for her 3 best friends and Mark shows up and is able to show his feelings for her. Daniel also shows up, and he and Mark wind up in a hilarious fight sequence over Bridget.
While we are supposed to root for Mark to win Bridget, (I did), I was bothered by one thing. Bridget was the one he wanted, but he was too spineless to break up his romantic involvement with Natasha, his law partner. He even let it get to the point of the two of them becoming engaged before the predictable ending. You could tell, everytime Natasha snapped her fingers and said "Come on, Mark", that he was kind of sheepishly following her.
I saw one review here that criticized Mark's saying "You are a bad public speaker, you tend to run off at the mouth, but I like you just the way you are." I like that honesty, and I like being unafraid to let myself show to someone I like, and still have acceptance. I'd rather have that, than someone blowing false sunshine in my face.
All in all, I gave the movie an 8/10, would have been a 9, had it not been for Mark's attitude of "settling" when he thought he couldn't have Bridget.