Posts Tagged ‘Sally Phillips’

Mrs Darcy’s Dalliances

Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy

Director: Michael Morris

Cast: Renee Zellweger, Leo Woodall, Chiwitel Ejiofor, Hugh Grant, Colin Firth, Emma Thompson, Sally Phillips, Gemma Jones, Mila Jankovic, Casper Knopf

Running Time: 2 hours and 4 minutes.

Film Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Double Oscar winner Renee Zellweger (Judy, Cold Mountain) reprises her role of Helen Fielding’s character British TV producer Bridget Jones in the fourth film in this franchise, called Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy. The boy in question proves to be a handsome 28 years old park ranger Roxster Macduff wonderfully played by The White Lotus break out star Leo Woodall. In fact with the exception of the charismatic Hugh Grant, Leo Woodall is the best thing in the film.

(from left) Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant) and Bridget Jones (Renée Zellweger) in Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, directed by Michael Morris.

The cast from the other three films including Oscar winner Jim Broadbent (Iris) as Bridget’s Dad, Gemma Jones as Bridget ‘s Mother and of course Oscar winner Colin Firth (The King’s Speech) as her late husband Mr Darcy who unfortunately has passed away, appear extremely briefly. Audiences will be refreshed by a brief cameo by Emma Thompson as Bridget’s straight talking doctor.

It’s been nine years since the last film, Bridget Jones’s Baby which came out in 2016 and now our quirky heroine finds herself a lonely widow in contemporary London with two beautiful but misbehaving children Billy played by Casper Knopf and Mabel played by Mila Jankovic. Basically Bridget is not coping as a single mother, needs to go back to work and more importantly needs to find a decent fellow.

(from left) Bridget Jones (Renée Zellweger) and Roxster (Leo Woodall) in Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, directed by Michael Morris.

The first of Mrs Darcy’s dalliances is with Roxter Macduff superbly played by Leo Woodall, whose only drawback is that he is only 28 but initially through the help of Tinder, Bridget falls madly in love with him, which is a desire so blinding that in reality, it is a simply a cougar infatuation. The scene stealing moment in the film is with Roxter, practically shirtless rescuing a little dog from a shallow pond at a delightful English garden.

(from left) Bridget Jones (Renée Zellweger) and Roxster (Leo Woodall) in Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, directed by Michael Morris.

Who doesn’t love a shirtless 28 year old hunk jumping out of a pond with a cute dog in front of a gasping clutch my pearls collection of ladies?

The best scenes in the film are in the first 90 minutes particularly between Renee Zellweger and Hugh Grant, two consummately professional actors. Hugh Grant is fantastic as he reprises his role of Daniel Cleaver, the ageing playboy who provides Jones with some sage advice and witty comments.

(from left) Mr. Walliker (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Bridget Jones (Renée Zellweger) in Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, directed by Michael Morris.

Oscar nominee Chiwiitel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave) plays the whistle blowing Mr Wallaker, the teacher of Bridget’s naughty children. From of their frenetic school association, Mr Wallaker develops some feelings for Bridget and he proves to become a substantial father figure to miniature Darcy, Billy.

Despite some really funny moments mixed with some genuinely poignant scenes, Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy proves to be an uneven film, suitably carried by Renee Zellweger as she provides Bridget Jones with a fascinating character development from a lonely dysfunctional widow to a sensible mother, who relinquishes tinder, young men infatuations and more importantly her hideous pyjamas.

(center) Renée Zellweger as Bridget Jones in Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, directed by Michael Morris.

Director Michael Morris who is primarily a TV director let the film run on too long. There was a beautiful moment in the scene at Hampstead Heath in which the film should have ended, but then decided to run for an extra half an hour, which proved to be disappointing. Although this film lacks some skilful editing and comprehensive character development, it does prove to be a lovable romantic comedy about Mrs Darcy’s dalliances.

Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy gets a film rating of 7.5 out of 10 and proves to be an enjoyable Valentines film filled with unusual romances, jokes about aging and raising children. Recommended viewing for those that love the film franchise.

These Words Paid for My Dream

Blinded by the Light

Director: Gurinder Chadha

Cast: Viveik Kalra, Kulvinder Ghir, Meera Ganatra, Aaron Phagura, Hayley Atwell, Dean-Charles Chapman, Nell Williams, Sally Phillips, Frankie Fox

Sometimes it’s the small British films which are the most impressive.

Bend it like Beckham and Viceroy’s House director Gurinder Chadha returns with a delightful coming of age story Blinded by the Light a comic snapshot of an Immigrant Pakistani family living in Luton, Northern England in the dark end of the 1980’s during Margaret Thatcher’s iron grip on Britain.

Blinded by the Light is set in 1987 and focuses on the dreams and aspirations of Javed beautifully played by Viveik Kalra whose struggling to find his identity as a British Asian young male who is harbouring dreams of becoming a successful writer.

Viveik Kalra has already won the breakthrough actor’s award at the Seattle International Film Festival and his performance as Javed is spot on, a tortured teenager dealing with an overbearing father, a claustrophobic family and an urge to break free out of Luton, which in 1987 was rife with racial intolerance, economic recession and hardship.

When Javed is sent to the local college to do his A Levels he is encouraged to continue writing poetry and find his own voice by his free thinking English Literature teacher Ms Clay played by Hayley Atwell (Brideshead Revisited, The Duchess). More significantly he befriends Roops played by Aaron Phagura who introduces him to the working class music of The Boss, the New Jersey singer Bruce Springsteen who become famous in the early 1980’s. Instantly Javed identifies with the lyrics of Springsteen who becomes his role model.

Springsteen’s music helps Javed find his writing voice much to the horror of his conservative father who keeps thinking that Springsteen is a Jewish American.

Blinded by the Light deals with more than one teenager’s musical obsession, as director Gurinder Chadha makes insightful comments on racism, following one’s dreams and the economic sacrifices an immigrant family has to make when moving to a new country: in this case Britain in the 1980’s.

Soon Javed discovers his inner writing talent, learns to stand up to his father and even travels to New Jersey after winning a literary competition. Blinded by the Light is a wonderful musical drama focusing on one young man’s dream to leave his bigoted hometown and discover his real talent. In a poignant scene when Javed confronts his hard-working conservative father Malik played by Kulvinder Ghir, he states that “These words paid for my dreams” after he writes an article for the Luton Herald about the local Mosque being threatened with imminent closure.

Blinded by the Light is a gem of a film and gets a rating of 8 out of 10.

Audiences will love this heartwarming story of Javed whose literary dreams are inspired by the lyrics of Bruce Springsteen, although this distinctly British film is personal, relevant and less flashy.

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