Films: Bridget Jones - Mad About the Boy & Pilis (The Castle)

I'm back in Ireland for the weekend - despite the sheer confusion of our gate attendant at Stansted, who didn't know whether he was supposed to walk us the short distance to the plane, or wait for the bus.. and the film for today was Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, in which Renée Zellweger reprises the role of the lovelorn Bridget, married to Colin Firth but now, sadly, widowed. Also stars Isla Fisher, Chiwetel Ejiofor as the new teacher at Bridget's kids' school, Emma Thompson as Bridget's doctor, Jim Broadbent as Bridget's dad, and Hugh Grant - although not as a love interest this time; no, this time she finds a toyboy.. by the name of "Roxster". Well, it looked decent - and it was the only film showing in the afternoon, that I hadn't seen and was interested in seeing! It's showing everywhere - I decided to see it in Ennis.

Oh dear.. I mean, it's highly rated (not as high now, I see), and sure enough, it is decent. Roxster is the perfect Adonis, Hugh Grant is perfectly entertaining, as are Bridget's friends - there's much to like. Unfortunately, Bridget is, to me, as frustratingly irritating as always. Perhaps more so - what I might have forgiven in her younger years is harder to ignore now. I guess the filmmakers are playing to the crowd in making her as giggly as ever, but honestly, it's just annoying - happily, there's really only one scene where we really see it. But for heaven's sake, trying, then, to sell her as the saviour of the TV program she produces, the only one who knows how to interview a politician and ask the hard questions.. is, frankly, ridiculous. 

I can see this working much better with a slightly more serious Bridget, still fun-loving and irreverent, but not so prone to silly facial expressions and daft outbursts. The message of the film, mind you, is a good one, and it does get quite moving as we see how she and the kids deal with her husband's death. But I'm never going to warm to this inane character as she is.

Back at my mother's, and the late film was Pilis (The Castle) - set in and around Dublin, it concerns a Lithuanian family living there, with a talent for music. The teenage daughter gets an invitation to perform at a famous music venue "The Castle" - however, her mother says it just isn't practical, there's no future in music. The daughter, however, is determined - and goes to extraordinary lengths to achieve her dream!

Now, I liked this a lot more than Bridget Jones. It's much more believable, for a start - the determined mother and daughter, each as stubborn as the other, and the grandmother, completely demented, and dreaming of returning to her homeland. If there's a moral to the story, I guess it's that we can't always get what we want.. but I certainly enjoyed watching their efforts!

On Monday, back in London, and back with CT for a jazz & tap night at Piano Smithfield. I've booked the Old Red Cow, across the road, for a booking for dinner beforehand. Not supposed to be terrific, but I'll give them a try.

On Tuesday - I was waiting for the film list to come out, just in case, but finally plumped for another dinner at Greenwich Yacht Club with Over 40 Living the Life. It's always a good evening! Unfortunately, the organiser later messaged me to say she was not feeling the best, and might have to cancel - and she's now confirmed that she's cancelling, but says it's because of a "training evening". At time of writing, she hadn't cancelled it yet - but it is late at night. Well and good, this had some competition that night - so Plan B now is to head to La Grande Illusion, showing at the Prince Charles, again for one night only. A 1937 WWI drama about French prisoners of war escaping from a German prison, it is supposed to be good.

On Wednesday, I've discovered more storytelling - Winter's Night Wonder Tales, as advertised on Facebook (how sensible), this is happening upstairs at The Palmerston. Just saw it advertised as I was thinking of what to do that night!

And on Thursday, finally back with Up in the Cheap Seats for The Shark is Broken, at Richmond Theatre. A comedy about the making of Jaws.. how could I resist?! I was perturbed, mind you, to see that the "cheap" seats in the Stalls involve an automatic VIP experience booking, with champagne and such! Huh - I went for the next price level up, in the rear Stalls, thus paying much less.. Booked for the Buenos Aires Steakhouse, across the road, for beforehand..