Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason has plenty to offer fans
of the harried and sometimes confused heroine.

Picking up one month after we last left Bridget, Colin Firth returns as her earnest boyfriend, with Hugh Grant reprising his role as the caddish rival for her affections.

As once again, we're plunged into Bridget's frenetic and bittersweet world, the star Renee Zellweger opens up to Jan Janssen about her ongoing fascination with Bridget Jones, extra pounds and all, life after her best supporting actress Oscar for Chicago, and her own relationship follies.

Renee on Bridget Jones

Renee, as much as you might find it engaging to get back into Bridget Jones's head, getting back into her body is probably less enticing?
(Laughs) It's getting back into my body which is the hard part! Gaining the weight is not that hard except that you begin to worry that maybe it's not all that healthy. But I had gone through the experience once before and I knew what to expect and that made it easier.

I also kind of enjoyed getting rounder and more bosomy again, so it was like becoming a different kind of woman not just psychologically but also physically. So I never felt complex about changing my look even though it was nice to get back down to my usual weight because I feel healthier without the extra pounds.

Was it easier to do the accent this time around?
Yes, because I knew the voice and knew where I needed to go back to on that level. But the real challenge of becoming Bridget again isn't the accent, it's her sensibility and her struggle to become the person she wants to be. There's a very touching and sweet side to her that you have to find as an actress and I worked hard to find that side to Bridget in the first film and obviously I wanted to make sure I found that level again.

Did you feel that Bridget's character is much more evolved in The Edge of Reason?
We see more sides of her and get to know her better since we've already seen what she's gone through in the first film. So I think the audience is more comfortable with who she is and that makes it more challenging for me because I don't want to disappoint people who have developed an attachment for Bridget. So I treated this film as a way of exploring her growth as a woman and again dealing with men and the whole issue of relationships and what makes them work or not.

Why do you think the public has a soft spot in their hearts for Bridget?
Because she's flawed and yet she's so enthusiastic and kind of lovably determined to get through life no matter how many roadblocks are in her way. There's a sweet naturalness to her in the way she gets her hopes up and wants to please people and find love. I think that we all feel that we share so many of the embarrassments and disillusionments she experiences.

She's a fighter, above all else, and even though she goes through a lot of self-questioning and unhappiness, she's still wiling to throw herself into the fray and make her way through life. She has a lot of character and I think we all love that about her.

How was it working with Colin Firth and Hugh Grant again?
Oh, it was great. Often in this business you don't get a chance to renew friendships with other actors because your paths just don't cross unless you're at some film event or a festival. So there's this wonderful sense of catching up with your colleagues and seeing where their lives are at now. It's also nice to see that Colin's career has really started rolling in the last few years and I'm so happy for him.

Renee on relationships

Is it easy to imagine yourself in a similar situation to Bridget where you're torn between two men?
Relationships are always difficult although I've never really faced the kind of problem Bridget has, although it could be a nice problem to have (laughs).

Often we have this idealised conception of what a relationship should be like and then the reality is something different and you have to go through an adjustment process. So that's part of what Bridget is going through.

Is the Hugh Grant character symbolic of women being attracted to more dangerous men?
It's hard to know what specifically attracts you - you can't always reduce it to one thing. There is something about men who are more mysterious or charismatic which obviously attracts women - I'm sure the reverse is true, too. It gets even more complicated when the thing which makes someone attractive is also the thing which may make that person completely wrong for you.

So attraction can be a double-edged sword. We can easily find ourselves drawn to men who seem incredibly sexy and mysterious even when we know that they might be the kind to cheat on us and not be very respectful of who we are.

Do women like Bridget become less idealistic about romance as they get older because of bad experiences with men?
Oh, there's always the tendency to become more cynical if you've been through a number of relationships and particularly if some of them have turned out badly. Very few of us escape that. But we have to learn to understand ourselves and the way we approach relationships better. It's sad, but it's very hard to avoid those romantic highs and lows and in order to find our true love we have to keep looking and trying. I guess I'm pretty idealistic about love in that sense.

So women like Bridget shouldn't be forced to give up their idealism about romance even if she finds relationships difficult to handle?
No. As soon as you close yourself off to romance you're cheating yourself of one of the most beautiful experiences there is in life, which is to fall in love and be in love with someone.

It's the one subject in life which always obsesses us because it's so powerful and enrapturing. We also learn more about it every time we experience it - even just from standing at a distance and observing how we approach relationships we can know what it is that can make love last. So you have to keep your heart open.

What about your own romantic involvements of late?
Nothing very successful of late, I'm sorry to say. But I don't really worry about that because I think you just can't predict when you're going to find that ideal someone. I'm not in a hurry. It'll just happen when I'm not expecting it. I don't know!

Renee on fame and Christmas

Has winning the Oscar (for her supporting role in Chicago - Ed) changed your life or attitude in any way?
No, I don't think so. I don't think it's made me more or less confident in my abilities, because I've always believed in myself. But maybe it's made me feel a little more secure in terms of how other people view me - it's hard to say. I'm grateful for the honour, but I see it more as a recognition of my contribution to a very good film and I feel that the other women nominated were also very deserving of that kind of tribute.

I kind of feel like it's a symbol of my having reached a certain level in my profession and there's a lot of joy in being able to work with the best people in the industry. But I don't feel it's really changed the way I approach my work. I still want to stretch myself and push myself as an actor and keep finding great roles. That's what it's all about for me.

Does celebrity affect you in a positive or negative way?
I feel that people have always treated me very kindly and I've never felt really harrassed or invaded by the press. I guess I still feel so lucky and thrilled to have this kind of attention that I don't take it for granted and let myself get too annoyed by photographers or a lot of people asking for autographs.

One thing which is great about having darker hair now is that I can go into Starbucks and just pay for it and go home and nobody stops me. It's fantastic! Now I can have a real conversation with real people. I don't miss meeting people knowing who I am because I like meeting people under normal circumstances. I like to earn people's friendship. I like having a conversation where we smile, and make friends based on an organic exchange. Not because I'm a celebrity.

And it's so rare for me to meet people under normal circumstances where they don't know I am. It's funny as a brunette to meet people who don't know who I am and therefore don't care about me, as a famous person, and so I can meet a cashier in a store and if she is tired, she is just going to give me back my money and she doesn't care what type of bag I want or not. That's kind of refreshing.

Do you have any plans for Christmas?
Well, nothing for now, but for sure after doing all the press and promotion for Bridget Jones, I've promised myself I'll take a break as long as necessary.

I don't have a plan, and I don't want to take any role for a while. I just want to find myself again and just BE. Be a grown up woman with other pleasure than just working all the time. I need to find what make me happy again like time spent with my friends, my dog, and my family. Being also in the outdoors and hiking and read and write. I'd like to take at least a year off but I don't have any specific plan. I'll go back to work when the time feels right. I need to refuel and live a little bit!'