From Bridget to Barbara

But now she has taken on a very different mantle in Peyton Reed's homage to the old Doris Day/Rock Hudson movies. Renee plays Barbara Novak, an author whose book Down With Love is causing all sorts of problems for the male species.

But step forward dashing rogue Catcher Block (Ewan McGregor), who aims to seduce her into falling in love with him and proving that love does reign after all.

So Renee, why did you want to do this film?

"There were lots of reasons. I guess the first thing was how smart it was. I loved the script, it was so layered and so quick. It was really thick with double entendres and sexual innuendo and lots of references that were pat but clever.

"Visually, I knew it would be a really interesting film to see, but it was the character more than anything. She's a classic '60s woman who re-invents herself and I thought that would be interesting to play."

It's not a conventional romantic comedy...

"I loved that it isn't a chick flick, because the last movie I want to go and see is a formulaic love story that we've seen a hundred times. It's a genre that people aren't careful with any more, because it seems like they don't have to be.

"You know, most of them are 'It's boy meets girl, it's got two big stars, so here we go'. I don't want to make that movie and with this, we didn't do that. We play with those themes but we did it in a way that was creatively satisfying and much more challenging."

Your character, Barbara Novak, has a very elaborate plan to get her man. Do you think anything goes when it comes to love?

"I don't know, I guess it depends on the person. I think the humour in the film comes from the fact that we can all relate to having made extreme compromises in pursuit of love. We all have that story at the back of our minds where we go 'My God, I can't believe that I did that or that I went to those lengths'. Barbara really does go to those lengths and then some, so it's just funny."

Do you think men and women are the same when it comes to dealing with love and sex?

"No. Biologically, I think there are elements that can be controlled, but I really believe there are differences in the way men and women communicate and in what drives us. But there are plenty of girls I know who in no way conform to what we generally regard as female qualities.

"I mean, traditionally, women are considered to be passive and hopelessly romantic, but I don't necessarily believe that."

The costumes are pretty wild, so were they fun to wear?

"Well they weren't thinking about comfort in the shoe department back then, I can tell you. But this was an era when you paid real attention to how you presented yourself, and every day the fashion department came up with something extraordinary to wear. It was all fantasy."

The film harks back to the Doris Day/Rock Hudson sex comedies of the '60s. Are you a Doris Day fan?

"Oh yes. She's completely charming, alluring, compelling and very interesting. She was smart and you could see it, even when playing the ingnue. But it was a different style of acting back then because those films had a sort of heightened sense of reality and it's the same with this one. The way you deliver the lines, the pacing, was different from what I was used to."

Coming from Texas, did you give Ewan McGregor any tips on his southern accent?

"No way. It was definitely someone putting on a southern accent, there's no question of that, but to authenticate it would be taking away from the fun."

How did you get on with him?

"He was wonderful and he always surprises and inspires me. I've been a fan for so long and now it's like tenfold. He's my partner in crime, my playground buddy. We giggled and laughed like little kids in recess every day. We were dumb little kids and it was a lot of fun."

Down With Love is very different from Chicago and also from Bridget Jones's Diary. How do you decide what films to take?

"I have to feel something for the character, for the project and I have to think 'Is this a movie that I want to go and see?'. Then you have to meet the people involved in it and see if you want to spend months of your life with them because, ultimately, you're there every day with them and they become part of your life, so you have to respect them."

So the amount of money you're offered doesn't come into it?

"No. I will not make an artistic decision based on money. It's about personal achievement and growth. I don't care about money in itself. I don't buy things that flaunt wealth or status because I don't care about that stuff."

You've been in Britain filming the sequel to the massively successful Bridget Jones's Diary. Were you happy to reprise your role there?

"It had to be as special as it should be because why make it if it's not?"

Do you see any similarities between Bridget and Barbara in Down With Love because they're both searching for men?

"I suppose they're similar in that way and because they're both working women, but I actually think they're completely different. Bridget is searching for herself, she's trying to get past what everybody else says she ought to do, while Barbara knows what she's interested in and is actually being really crafty in trying to make that happen."

You're also in the upcoming Cold Mountain with Nicole Kidman and Jude Law. Do you work all the time?

"I'm taking a few months off. I've been working for four years straight and although it's been a very rich, wonderful four years and I wouldn't trade them for anything, it is time to sit down for a bit. The problem is that every time that I've thought 'Alright, that's done, I'll take a rest', something comes along and I think 'Wow, wouldn't it be fun to do that!'"

Renee Zellweger is currently starring in Down With Love at cinemas everywhere.