With arms flailing wildly, a woman strategically smacks another shopper in the face with her Gucci handbag, all for that last pair of Jimmy Choos. “Confessions of a Shopaholic,” based on the book by Sophie Kinsella, mocks the illogical behaviors found in many fashionistas through the story of 25-year-old Rebecca Bloomwood. As a child, Bloomwood (Isla Fisher, “Wedding Crashers”) was forced into living a thrifty life, dreaming of designer clothes and the luxurious life.
Well, those dreams became a reality with the possession of several credit cards. Soon this obsession results in an obscene amount of bills with no way to pay them. Her shopping addiction becomes a catch-22, as her means of coping with hard times in her life — her astronomical debt — is to go and buy more things. Bloomwood takes a job at a financial magazine in order to pay off her debt.
The irony of someone like Bloomwood, who has awful financial skills, writing for a finance magazine comes to realization as she walks into the interview and has no idea what to say. Much to her surprise, the editor is Luke Brandon (Hugh Dancy, “Ella Enchanted”), a stranger from the street she met just before the interview. Slapstick situations like these occur frequently throughout the film as Rebecca’s lies force her between a rock and a hard place. The rest of the movie deals with her avoiding Derek Smeath (the “heartless” debt collector) and showing the difficulties that her poor decisions and debt have made for her and the people in her life. Of course, like any romantic comedy, she has to fall in love with the dashingly handsome Brandon, whose English accent would make anyone melt .
Although many reviews have criticized “Confessions of a Shopaholic,” many of the negative claims are unwarranted. “Shopaholic” is a romantic comedy. It’s not supposed to make you think of the world’s oppression. The goal of a romantic comedy is to provide the audience with a good time while providing sufficient eye candy to leave female audience members swooning. That is it, and the movie does exactly that.
Fisher portrays Rebecca Bloomwood as a quirky young lady who, much like any young person, is going through difficult times. She’s a relatable character because she is not perfect and she has her flaws, such as a debilitating obsession with shopping. Much unlike our lives, her mistakes turn into hilarious situations. Another criticism was that the film is entirely out of touch with the current financial crisis, when in fact, it is a hilarious take on events. Perhaps this movie will confront the troublesome debate over necessity and luxury, needs and wants.
The movie does poke fun at how ridiculously materialistic people can be. Rolling on the floor over a pair of designer boots and distracting a woman by screaming, “There’s a sale at Burberry!” puts into perspective what drives “shopaholics.” Although it seems that the movie just makes fun of Bloomwood’s problem, it does delve deeper into the fact that many people take “retail therapy” to the extreme. Bloomwood formed a dependent relationship on her credit cards and shopping because those were her coping mechanisms during tough times.
In the end, the film is the epitome of chick flick. Fans of “27 Dresses” and “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” will add “Shopaholic” to their list of favorite films. With that said, guys are less likely to share this admiration unless they truly appreciate a Louis Vuitton handbag and words “sale” across a display window. For the perfect girl’s night out, check out “Confessions of a Shopaholic” and indulge in the sappy, fantastic world of the romantic comedy.
4 stars out of 5.
