SummaryAt the start of the New Year, 32-year-old Bridget (Zellweger) decides it's time to take control of her life -- and start keeping a diary. Now, the most provocative, erotic and hysterical book on her bedside table is the one she's writing. [Miramax]
Directed By:Sharon Maguire
Written By:Helen Fielding, Andrew Davies, Richard Curtis
Bridget Jones's Diary
Metascore
Generally Favorable
66
User score
Generally Favorable
7.0
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Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
67% Positive
22 Reviews
22 Reviews
27% Mixed
9 Reviews
9 Reviews
6% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
100
A triumph for all involved.
88
A delightful and endearing romantic comedy with the shape and resonance of a Jane Austen novel.
User score
Generally Favorable
73% Positive
108 Ratings
108 Ratings
20% Mixed
30 Ratings
30 Ratings
7% Negative
10 Ratings
10 Ratings
Jan 25, 2025
10
BJD is a tale about being accepted for who you are. All of the qualities you don’t like about yourself could be the exact reason someone else falls in love with you - what a brilliant message! The way the film arrives at this message is dicey (fat jokes), they obviously should have chosen a different path. Though, BJD still succeeds in making me feel great and warm inside when I watch it. Bridget (portrayed perfectly by Renée Zellweger who is clearly having the time of her life), is funny, pretty, smart and most importantly, unapologetically herself. You can’t help but love her! Every girl watching can relate to at least one aspect of Bridget so you feel so seen when you watch her struggle through life. Undeniably, BJD is also universally loved because of the fantastic male leads - a very young and dashing Colin Firth and Hugh Grant. Both are dreamy and utterly irresistible as Bridget’s romantic interests. If, somehow, you are watching BJD for the first time then you will be taken aback. It definitely doesn’t hold up to todays standards, and it contains very outdated humour with a running theme that Bridget is fat. And while Bridget does grow as a character, I personally think the biggest arc/improvement she goes on is in the next film. If you are looking for a massive overhaul in her life/personality then this film isn’t for you, that’s just not the type of franchise that BJD is.
May 10, 2021
10
This is an all around fun flick. They don't really make them like this anymore. I wish they did!
80
Bessed with a gleamingly polished, very funny script.
75
Zellweger has a ticklish furriness reminiscent of Jean Arthur in her screwball comic prime.
63
95 breezy minutes that typify cotton-candy filmmaking.
50
I could have done without all the pushy tactics of this romantic comedy.
30
The worst part of Ms. Zellweger's plight is that she, along with others in the cast, has fallen victim to a first-time feature director whose vocabulary doesn't seem to include the word "simplicity."
Mar 29, 2016
10
One of the most cliche'd romantic comedies I've seen, but it's a great film adaptation to the source material but the screenplay written by Helen Fielding (based on her novel she works on the screenplay), Andrew Davies and Richard Curtis (Notting Hill, Four Weddings and a Funeral) is super charming and is spiking wit also is cheerful, the script and Sharon Maguire's direction work perfectly together. Renee Zellweger couldn't be more perfect to play Bridget Jones, she outshines the material. Renee Zellweger plays Bridget Jones, a 32 year old decides it's time she takes control of her life by keeping a diary. She's a heavy-drinking heavy-smoking, who works in publishing, is torn between Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant) and Mark Darcy (Colin Firth) who is introduced to Bridget in a god-awful sweater. Bridget's mother (Gemma Jones) has left her husband (Jim Broadbent) for a TV huckster. Despite it's cliche's it has a intelligent screenplay and three great performances by Zellweger, Firth and Grant. 5 out of 5 stars
May 29, 2025
6
It seems like a blueprint for the romantic comedy of the 2000s and 2010s. It's quite funny, Renée Zellweger is great, and the gay best friend isn't a cringeworthy stereotype. Personally, though, I find the film too shallow, and the eponymous diary plays almost no role at all (except in the rather odd finale).
Apr 14, 2025
6
Def better then number 2 but still not amazing not much story comedy inproves in this one but still not great and expect the same weirdness and more darker themes in this film.
Nov 21, 2021
4
This is a very strange review to write and post. 'Bridget Jones's Diary' stands out as a highly entertaining movie. I just couldn't stop watching despite the numerous major flaws I directly identified in it. The story goes on and on with many twists and turns (clearly too much of them) and it got me absolutely hypnotized at some point. I guess this movie however succeeded in some facts I still can't describe. This feature has not aged well. Just consider the status of women (all sentimentally and emotionally dependent on men) and homosexuals. Some jokes are way too embarrassing and simply don't work anymore, and that's for a better world believe me. Bad taste. This is the main criticism I have for this film. But you can easily add it to the shaky scenario, the terrific pace (the major urge to make the public laugh), Colin Firth's (Mark Darcy) terrible acting performance, the overall level of naivety surrounding all characters and the amazing non-empathy Bridget's character induced in me. Paradoxically, this film succeeds in portraying the woman that you should not be these days. Only alone to be with more men, falsly confident and insecure about being a person outside of a relationship. Definitely quite a dangerous movie for impressionable minds and younglings.
Jul 16, 2019
3
The first 20 minutes were unbearable. I wanted to smash everything in my reach. The jokes were made to embarrass one of the main characters (especially Bridget) and the ending is forseeavle and lame. Picked up some pace in the middle though, which made it less bad.
Production Company:
- Miramax
- Universal Pictures
- StudioCanal
- Working Title Films
- Little Bird
Release Date:Apr 13, 2001
Duration:1 h 37 m
Rating:R
Tagline:What I'm trying to say, very inarticulately, is that, um, in fact, perhaps despite appearances, I like you, very much. Just as you are.
Awards
Golden Globes, USA
• 2 Nominations
Academy Awards, USA
• 1 Nomination
Empire Awards, UK
• 1 Win & 4 Nominations
