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Friday
13Feb2009

Movie Review - 'Confessions of a Shopaholic'

DateFriday, February 13, 2009 at 12:25AM
Confessions of a Shopaholic

Starring Isla Fisher, Hugh Dancy, and Krysten Ritter
Directed by P.J. Hogan
Rated PG

confessionsofashopaholic_galleryposter.jpg I am fascinated less by the films themselves, but there is something to be analyzed in these movies that draw in viewers with the allure of high glamour and fashion but ultimately reject the expensive brand names as evil and soul-stealing.

True, Sex and the City, which started the current trend, has an unabashed love affair for the clothes in its very well-dressed New York City, but labels are just accessories to dehumanized characters in The Devil Wears Prada, and certainly it exists on TV in Ugly Betty, where only the shallow, evil people wear the good threads.

Confessions of a Shopaholic sounds like a funny title, but seriously, the girl's got issues. Rebecca Bloomwood - a name that simply belongs in the movies - owes thousands upon thousands of dollars. She lives rent-free with her best friend because she can't pay all the bills and swing the credit cards, too. She lies to important people about unimportant things, and worse, about important things, all because she has a compulsion. Replace booze with shoes, and it's like Leaving Louis Vuitton.

Rebecca (Isla Fisher from Wedding Crashers and Definitely Maybe) is a writer by trade, which raises another question: Why is it that the only women in New York this mad about fashion work in publishing? In her first step towards shopping sobriety, Rebecca takes a job at a financial magazine, and if you don't get the irony, that's OK; it's explained six or eight times in the movie.

Naturally, she falls for her boss (Hugh Dancy). There are good reasons for that: He's the only single male character under 40 in the entire movie, it saves us from needing an additional character down the road, and his name's Hugh. Everyone knows that in romantic comedies, the heroine always makes a beeline for the English Hugh with tousled hair. It can't be helped.

But somewhere along the way, Rebecca's shopping is going to catch up with her, or her stern creditor (Robert Stanton) will. And that's roughly what's at play here. Only one thing can really make or break Confessions of a Shopaholic, because we know the story inside and out, we think we know what's going to happen next no matter when we are, and so we're kind of along for the well-heeled ride.

Fortunately, producer Jerry Bruckheimer cast - and director P.J. Hogan - let run free the graceful and very funny Isla Fisher. There is no movie without her, and that's a positive and a negative. It's a negative because Hogan never bothered to build a movie without her. Nothing else, and I mean nothing else, even catches your attention for a second, unless you really are only seeing it for the clothes. On the plus side, Fisher is so much fun to watch and she's so invested in this character that we don't need much more of a movie supporting her. But a little bit more would help.

Last week, a hall of fame comedian named Steve Martin released The Pink Panther 2. There is no joy in his Inspector Clouseau, nor in watching him. It is completely labored, from the page to the screen. It shows up rehearsed to the nth degree. Isla Fisher, on the other hand, has developed a craven little character in Rebecca Bloomwood. She knows she has a problem but when she feels good about herself she lights up every corner of the room. Fisher's physical comedy is just the right amount for something like this, but her timing is impeccable.

I was reminded of Reese Witherspoon in Legally Blonde, although Witherspoon and the movie are a half-step ahead. But it was the moment the future Oscar winner showed she had some comedic skill even though it first had to go through the filter of creating her character. And it made her a star.

Second verse same as the first: This movie's not great, but Isla Fisher is the real deal.

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AuthorColin Boyd | | in , , , , | Print ArticlePrint Article | | Comment3 Comments |

Reader Comments (3)

I can't wait to see this with all my girlfriends : )

Friday, February 13, 2009 | Unregistered Commenterlaura petersen

I don't understand this movie at all. I'm not into fashion in the least bit. Isn't she married to the Borat guy?

Friday, February 13, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterLisa

yes, and she's also unbearably hot.

Monday, March 9, 2009 | Unregistered Commenterjust saying

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