Bridget Jones likes things she knows are bad for her: cigarettes, too much alcohol and unreliable, handsome men.

That's part of why Bridget Jones's Diary is such a good film. In Jerry Maguire, Tom Cruise had Renee Zellweger's character "from hello," but Zellweger wins over the audience as Bridget in the opening credits. A woman who lip syncs to "All By Myself" in her pajamas can't be so bad.

Bridget is the type of character people can relate to. She's goofy, believable and painfully aware of her own shortcomings.An uproar went up when Zellweger, a Texan, was cast as the British Bridget. However, there is no reason to fret: Zellweger's accent and performance are dead on.

Bridget's in her 30s, single and looking for love in the film, directed by Sharon Maguire and based on Helen Fielding's novel.Bridget is the target of annoying behavior on all sides: set-up attempts from her mother, questions about her love life and relationship advice from "smug marrieds."

She is soon torn between two suitors. Her good-looking boss, Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant), hits on her via office messenger system. Grant departs from his usual bumbling good guy roles and seems far more believable as a charmer. Bridget's mom introduces her to a badly dressed, but brilliant, lawyer, Mark Darcy (Colin Firth.)

The supporting cast is a collection of oddballs, especially Bridget's flighty mom (Gemma Jones) and deadpan dad ( Jim Broadbent).They give you a good sense of where Bridget got both her outrageous and melancholy sides. Salman Rushdie has a funny cameo as himself.


To learn more about Bridget Jones's Diary, visit http://entertainment.msn.com/bridget/default.asp.
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