Bridget Jones is an average woman struggling against her age, her weight, her job, her lack of a man, and her many imperfections. As a New Year’s Resolution, Bridget decides to take control of her life, starting by keeping a diary in which she will always tell the complete truth. The fireworks begin when her charming though disreputable boss takes an interest in the quirky Miss Jones. Thrown into the mix are Bridget’s band of slightly eccentric friends and a rather disagreeable acquaintance who Bridget cannot seem to stop running into or help finding quietly attractive.
Bridget Jones’s Diary is a 2001 British-American-French romantic comedy film directed by Sharon Maguire and written by Richard Curtis, Andrew Davies, and Helen Fielding. It is based on Fielding’s novel of the same name, which is a reinterpretation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.
The adaptation stars Renée Zellweger as Bridget, Hugh Grant as the caddish Daniel Cleaver, and Colin Firth as Bridget’s “true love”, Mark Darcy. Production began in May 2000 and ended in August 2000, and took place largely on location in London and the Home Counties. The film premiered on 4 April 2001 in the UK and was released to theatres on 13 April 2001 simultaneously in the UK and in the US.
Bridget Jones’s Diary received positive reviews and was a commercial success, grossing over $280 million worldwide. Zellweger was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in the film. A sequel, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, was released in 2004 and another sequel, Bridget Jones’s Baby, was released in 2016.
Principal photography began on 16 May 2000 and concluded on 8 August 2000. The crew spent six weeks shooting in and around London.[6] Locations used included Shad Thames where Bridget and Daniel have their first date, the Royal Courts of Justice, St Pancras railway station and Tower Bridge. Scenes were filmed at Stoke Park in Buckinghamshire where Bridget and Daniel ventured to for their mini-break.
Wrotham Park in Hertfordshire served as the Darcys’ home. Stansted Airport doubled as JFK Airport in New York, while Syon House in Brentford featured as the venue for the anniversary party. The crew filmed for four days at Snowshill in Gloucestershire which featured as the home of Bridget Jones’s family. After six weeks of shooting on location, the crew moved to Shepperton Studios in Surrey.
Bridget Jones’s Diary Soundtrack
The film’s soundtrack was composed by Patrick Doyle. It also features two hit songs that were released as singles, “Out of Reach” by Gabrielle and “It’s Raining Men” by Geri Halliwell. The single became Halliwell’s fourth consecutive number-one hit single in UK Singles Chart and it became her most successful solo single to date. “Feels Like Sex”, another song from the album was originally slated as the lead single, but after “It’s Raining Men” was offered to Halliwell, the song was released as the first single, and was added to Scream if You Wanna Go Faster.
Halliwell’s version received positive reviews by music critics, experienced international success and hit the top ten in over two dozen countries around the world, going to number one in several of them, although it did not fare as well on the American charts. However, in the United Kingdom, “It’s Raining Men” debuted at number-one on the UK Singles Chart and stayed there for two weeks.
It became Halliwell’s fourth consecutive number-one single in the UK, selling 155,000 units in its first week and 80,000 in its second week. Overall the single went on to sell 440,000 copies in Britain alone, becoming the 13th best seller of 2001 and Halliwell’s most successful single worldwide.
The song was a big success in France, it sold over 812,000 copies, it was certified “Diamond” by the Syndicat National de l’Édition Phonographique (SNEP).[30] With this song, Geri Halliwell won the International Song of the Year award at the 2002 NRJ Music Awards in France. A remix of the song, The Almighty Mix from the Toshiba-EMI series “Dance Mania”, volume 20 was also featured in the 2002 Japanese video games, DDRMAX2 Dance Dance Revolution 7thMix and Dance Dance Revolution EXTREME. This version of the song was used as the theme song in the advertisements for New Talent Singing Awards Vancouver Audition 2003. In July 2006 the song entered at seventy-nine on the Mexican Digital Sales Chart, spending two weeks inside the Top 100.
Halliwell was inspired by the 1980 film Fame for the video. She said, “I was just watching Fame on video and I thought what a great excuse”. During the video she also does ballet.
Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001)
Directed by: Sharon Maguire
Starring: Renee Zellweger, Hugh Grant, Colin Firth, Jim Broadbent, James Callis, Sally Phillips, Gemma Jones, Shirley Henderson, Sally Phillips, Charlie Caine
Screenplay by: Helen Fielding, Andrew Davies, Richard Curtis
Production Design by: Gemma Jackson
Cinematography by: Stuart Dryburgh
Film Editing by: Martin Walsh
Costume Design by: Rachael Fleming
Set Decoration by: Shirley Lixenberg
Music by: Patrick Doyle
MPAA Rating: R for language and some strong sexuality.
Distributed by: Universal Pictures
Release Date: April 13, 2001 (UK / US), October 10, 2001 (France)
Views: 178
