Well, it seems the "Bridget Jones" phenomena penetrated the film-making nowadays. A talented Hungarian filmmaker lady created a nice after-shoot of the "original". She took two really pretty female characters in the summit of their single-hood, added a cool mix of guys, the not-so-bad (Tamás), the not-so-good (Péter), and the runner-up (Ali), placed these persons into the microcosmos of a theater, and voilà, there is a refreshing and a way more entertaining presentation of the original "Single-Lady-Chases-The-Father-For-Her-New-Baby" scenario.
But, as always, the secret is in the details. First, this film is a fully loaded comedy, with lots of laughable situations and sparking dialogs. But also a personal drama, about a working woman in her middle of thirties, who already gave up the chance to get a "soulmate", and the remaining, and quite serious goal is to have a baby. This dramatic motivation pushes her into pretty nasty situations, the outsiders (and the viewers) can easily laugh at.
And the story, contrary to the gags is pretty close to the real life, the characters really have depth. That is why can Mr. Csányi, (a star from "Kontroll") outperform even Mr. Firth. With ease. Same applies to a Ms. Schell - Ms. Zellwegner comparison.
And not just the drama balances the comedy. There is lots of emotion presented in the film, but with utter sensitivity. I have to mention Mr. Gulyás' picture crafting talent, some of the sequences are not just perfect, but stunning, especially when he plays with the speed. I think there is the best Budapest depiction in the last decade, compressed into less then 20 seconds. Some of his sequences gave the perfect depth of this comedy.
Let see some of the cons. First, as I mentioned, the story lacks the uniqueness. Some of the repetitions came from a theatrical archetype (secret lover escapes through the balcony), some from more recent films, (a similar scene with the applicants appeared in the "Coming to America", in the "Sea of Love", or speaking of Hungarian films in the "Kontroll"). I found some of the gags a bit too harsh, but I guess it is a question of personal taste. I have to add, even the "harsh" ones are way more civilized, than you can experience in recent "campus comedies" like "Van Wilder". And Ms. Schell's sidekick, Ms. Dobó, is simply not up to the challenge. The director most probably knew it, and adjusted the role accordingly, but she remained as a weak spot on the film.
So, if you liked Bridget Jones, if you like to see it with more humor, more life, and more beauty, you should see this film also.
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