Bridget Jones is back — but is she really “Mad About the Boy?”

Photo Collage by Braylan Enscoe, Staff Photographer

I’m not one to cry at sappy rom-coms, but within 18 minutes of “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy,” I had tears welling up in my eyes.

“Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy” is a satisfying continuation of the “Bridget Jones” film series. The aging original cast of “Bridget Jones’s Diary” — Renée Zellweger, Hugh Grant and Colin Firth — incites nostalgia for fans of the earlier films. The charming characters and the familiar comedy feels comforting. This new phase of Bridget Jones’s life — she’s now a middle-aged mother and widow — is fresh and in-touch with today’s industry trends while still incorporating tasteful nods to the previous films.

“Mad About the Boy” follows a similar format to the other “Bridget Jones” films: a distressed Bridget (played by the 55-year-old Zellweger) is awkwardly navigating her love life, stumbling about London streets with disheveled hair and mismatched outfits, while making constant attempts at self-improvement. 

But in this fourth film, director Michael Morris adds a new, heartbreaking layer to Bridget’s usual character arc. Here, Bridget moves on from the passing of her late husband Mark Darcy (Firth) — a main character in the previous films — and opens herself up to love as a widow. 

In a “Bridget Jones” signature cringe-worthy moment, mother of two Bridget Zellweger) falls for Roxter (Leo Woodall), a 29-year-old park warden, and the two start dating.

Despite the allusion to Roxter, the “boy” in the film’s title, his role is primarily to kickstart Bridget’s personal growth as an independent woman. Roxter’s character is barely developed and extremely sexualized in his surprisingly minimal screen time, and he feels irrelevant by the end of the film. Compared to the complexities of Darcy and Daniel Cleaver (Grant) in the original film, he is simple and unexplored. Scott Wallaker (Chiwetel Ejiofor), the second love interest of the film, is far more complex.

In fact, Roxter’s inclusion and unwarranted emphasis in the title made the movie confusing at times. To me, it created a disjointed narrative — as if he was written into the movie as a revision to an already complete storyline.

It makes sense for “Mad About the Boy’s” filmmakers to write a trending trope into the film. The older woman and younger man narrative has been trending recently, notably in films like “Babygirl” and “The Idea of You,” starring Nicole Kidman and Anne Hathaway respectively. Incorporating Roxter’s character promises a broader audience for the movie. Without Roxter’s character, the movie would primarily reach the fans of this two-decade-old rom-com franchise. But Roxter attracts a young audience that enjoys this popular romantic narrative, which could be important to the movie’s commercial success.

Easter eggs from the original film, and iconic performances from even actors in minor roles (like Emma Thompson as Dr. Rawlings), hit a wonderfully nostalgic note. This movie has a much greater impact for those who have seen the original film — but I’d only recommend movies one and three! 

To fellow “Bridget Jones” enthusiasts, this fourth film is a heartwarming cinematic treasure. Roxter may have been needed to grab a younger audience’s attention, but a muddled narrative doesn’t take away from the unparalleled surge of emotions that comes with experiencing the original cast, original comedy and the nostalgia of this franchise.

“Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy” is available to stream on Peacock.