It's only appropriate to start off my review of Confessions of a Shopaholic with a few confessions of my own: I hate to shop, I couldn't care less about fashion or designer clothes, and I've never read any of Sophie Kinsella's best-selling Shopaholic books. All that being said, I still appreciate the occasional lighthearted rom-com and had high hopes for this one as it stars Isla Fisher, whom I absolutely adored as Wedding Crashers' "stage five clinger." Her Shopaholic character, journalist (in the loosest sense of the term) Rebecca Bloomwood, is only slightly less neurotic than the woman last seen driving off into the sunset with Vince Vaughn. Instead of going ga-ga over men, however, Rebecca's obsessed — and I do mean obsessed — with buying the latest and greatest shoes, dresses, bags and accessories that call to her from high-end department store windows. That's all fine and dandy (well, not really, but I'll save my preaching for later), until her job suddenly vaporizes and she has no way to pay off thousands of dollars in credit card bills… and aggressive debt collectors start breathing down her neck.
So she sets her sights on her dream job at the glamorous Alette magazine, where everything revolves around fashion and all employees look like runway models. Unfortunately they're not hiring at the moment, but Rebecca learns that if she gets her foot in the door at one of the other magazines owned by Alette's parent company, she'll have a much easier time reaching her ultimate goal. Through a comedy of errors, Rebecca does in fact land a gig at sister publication Successful Savings (oh, the irony), where she is almost immediately hailed as the savior of the company after she writes one (one!) article comparing a fake cashmere sweater to high-APR credit cards. And that's where things start getting really unbelievable.
See, the problem I had with Confessions of a Shopaholic is that it was too shallow and fluffy, and at no point was it ever truly funny or engaging. Which is a shame, since two scorchingly hot summer nights ago when I popped in this DVD, I wanted nothing more than to giggle, ooh and ahh along with what had the potential to be the ultimate chick flick. I knew there'd be abhorrently irresponsible purchases and a handsome boss (Hugh Dancy) with an accent who get romantically involved with his employees and a somewhat ditzy heroine (with a heart of gold!) and her slightly smarter friend (Krysten Ritter) who tries to put her on the right path while everyone's surrounded by bold jackets and dangly earrings and skyscraper heels and eye-catching scarves. That would've all been OK — there is a huge part of my heart from which I dole out love for fun, don't-make-me-think-too-hard, who-cares-if-I-forget-this-in-a-day movies. But everything fell apart for me when Rebecca — the protagonist who we're supposed to be rooting for and sympathizing with — started behaving outright stupidly. Who shows up late for a team meeting where she knows no one and decides to bring along an electric pencil sharpener so that she can start loudly sharpening away while her boss is speaking? Who completely ignores a deadline (on her first day at work) in order to stand in line for hours at a sample sale? What grown woman gets mistaken for a waitress at a black-tie ball and gets so flustered that she just plays along?
It would've been one thing if Rebecca was simply a shopaholic. The following plot is all anyone was really expecting from this movie anyway, right? Girl likes clothes, girl buys too many clothes, girl realizes the error of her ways, girl learns to control herself… and wins over cute boy in the process, while still looking fabulous. 
But it's hard to enjoy that kind of story when the girl in question seems not only more than a bit selfish and clueless, but also in no way remorseful about the dire situation she's gotten herself into.
Since I've never read any of the Shopaholic books, I'm not sure whether they portray Rebecca in the same (unlikable) way. I do know that this movie combined the action of the first two novels in the series and also switched the setting from England to the U.S., so perhaps something was lost in translation. Regardless, I don't hold any of the cast members responsible for my lack of enjoyment of this movie — if lesser actors were involved it might've been downright unbearable. Instead I chalk my unenthusiastic reaction to Confessions of a Shopaholic up to the fact that it was impossible to lose myself in the story of a flighty, debt-laden fashionista when all I wanted to do was shake some sense into her… after raiding her closet, of course.
James' take on the theatrical run of this film was even less forgiving! Check it out here.
Posted on June 26, 2009 at 7:11 pm
Firstly, I had a completely different take on the movie, but then again I do love fashion/shopping/ so that probably contributed to my enjoyment of the film.
The electric pencil sharpener didn’t make any sense. As for the deadline… she IS a shopaholic, she fell off the wagon. As for the waitress debacle, I would NEVER play along, ever.
Anyway, it has been 5 months since I last saw the movie, but I really thought she repented and tried to make up for her behavoir at the end of the movie.
Posted on June 26, 2009 at 11:09 pm
Watched this with my sister. I laughed a few times, but my sister was cracking up most of the movie. I’m very open minded towards “chick-flicks”, like the newest Pride and Prejudice is one of my favorite movies this decade, so I can honestly say this movie was so-so but worth the rent at least.
Posted on June 27, 2009 at 10:35 am
THIS is exactly why I haven’t seen this movie yet. I am scared. I absolutely LOVE the Shopaholic series by Sophie Kinsella. They are very light-hearted, easy reads, but Rebecca is a really great character. Sounds like it indeed was lost in translation. Erika, try out just the first book. You may not like it because it is a bit of fluff, but Rebecca’s shopaholic-ness isn’t just clothes, shoes and accessories, it’s EVERYTHING. Cookware, stationary, gifts for friends, linens, luggage, you name it. I am even more afraid I will hate this movie now, because as you know by now, I’m not a big fan of books I love being turned into garbage. Drat the film studios!
Posted on June 29, 2009 at 3:54 pm
I thought the movie reflected the character of the book perfectly. Compulsive, vapid, and dishonest. Albeit her actions were usually driven by some twisted good intentions.
Posted on July 7, 2009 at 2:27 pm
I completely agree!!! The book was great and all of the things the movie wasn’t. For goodness sake, her boss in the movie is NOT her boss in the book and her roommates fiancee is her cousin who is lusting after Rebecca. I know sometimes you have to edit books down for movies but so many great and more believable parts were skipped. Like when Rebecca gets a job in a shop and hides the perfect pair of pants from a customer and gets fired. Now that could have happened…and I’m pretty sure I did it. :-( Also, the scene on tv with the banker, totally different. He was not a total jerk as portrayed on here. He had the decency to wait until she finished the show to confront her. She was a much more honorable person in the book. Also, the big deal about her going straight was because she agreed with horrible financial advice her neighbors got and lost them a lot of money. Fixing her mistake was the best part. So, READ THE BOOK!
Posted on July 7, 2009 at 3:09 pm
I could get past all of that and be fine with it. Fine, she loves to shop. Fine, she has such an addiction that she can’t stop. All understandable. I could even accept the rom-com romance scenario and not bat an eyelash.
What I could not get past were two things:
1.) The mannequins coming to life. That was just freakin’ creepy!!! Yeah, I get it, you’re enticed by shopping so much that it’s as if things come to life and speak to you. Talking mannequins are still terrifying.
2.) The entire debt collector scenario. I understand they were trying to make him really skeezy and scary, but debt collectors can’t just show up at your door. The simple fact that this woman was dodging payments for months on end and then on top of it acts like Derek is the bad guy for rightfully doing his job just rubbed me the wrong way. And what really chapped my backside was when she paid him $7k in pennies! PENNIES!
She was not the hero when she did this. Granted, it was kind of funny and I’m sure we’ve all been at that stage of frustration, but it was absolutely childish. Maybe I’m just uptight, but in my book it would have been better if she’d at least been TRYING to pay it back (even if that meant very small increments) and Derek was harassing her despite this. That would have made for a much better scary debt collector plot line and I could have stood by that. IF she’d been trying and dude was still incessantly harassing her, then I would have stood up and cheered when she paid in pennies.
Posted on July 7, 2009 at 3:24 pm
Movie sucked
Posted on July 7, 2009 at 3:25 pm
I actually loved the movie. I did read the novel first and noticed quite a few changes in the movie, but I still found it enjoyable (which is usually hard for me to do with books turned to movies). It’s obvious why she missed the deadline: it was a sample sale. For a shopaholic, there’s no better sale. All thoughts of anything else flew out the window. The pencil sharpener thing just shows her youth and inexperience in the ‘real world’ where credit card bills exist. Yes, it was a huge ditz moment, but funny. And after each spree, she regretted it so there’s obviously remorse. There’s one thing I really wanted to see though, and that was when she got a job in a store and hid zebra print jeans. And I was so happy to find this hidden in the deleted scenes. All in all, I say view the movie as an interpretation and on a different plane than the book. Both are fabulous.
Posted on July 7, 2009 at 8:38 pm
I didn’t really like this movie much, I mean I laughed a few times, but it wasn’t really my cup of tea. Something different I guess?
Posted on July 7, 2009 at 10:23 pm
The mannequin thing really startled and bothered me. There are just some things that don’t move well from the printed page to the big screen. And I felt she was just a bit toooo air-headed.
But there were some redeemable qualities to the movie, it was funny and I’m a sucker for romance:)
Posted on July 7, 2009 at 10:28 pm
I can not understand how someone so ditzy can get a job as a writer for any amgazine. She just did not seem intelligent enough for the job, even if she did come up with a few cute quips. It was an okay movie but I am glad I rented it through redbox and did not pay $8.50 to see it at the theater.
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 11:23 am
I watched this movie with my wife. I can appreciate a good romantic/comedy film. This was a good romantic/comedy film, and it was funny. There were a lot of parts where I laughed. Whereas with a movie like “He’s Just Not That Into You”…was a horrible piece of film and should never have been placed on the screen.
“Confessions of a Shopaholic” was just the light and funny movie that we needed.
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 1:07 pm
I LOVE the entire Shopaholic series and I was really nervous that the movie would stray too much from the books and I’d hate it. Well, they did take some liberties, but I still liked the movie. Yes, I wish they stayed true to the story as it had been written, but the movie was light-hearted, the fashion was amazing, Hugh Dancy gorgeous and I just love Isla Fisher. If you haven’t read the books I suggest you read them because there is much more to her character and, if you’re a true shopaholic, you will identify with everything that goes through Rebecca Bloomwood’s head while trying to justify her outrageous purchases!
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 1:07 pm
I totally agree with Daniel! I watched “Shopaholic” and “He’s Just Not That Into You…” on the same night and loved “Shopaholic” so much more. Having read all the books except the first one, I was happy with the movie. I do wish it still would have been set in England and that they would have kept the Suze/Tarkie storyline the same. Other than that though I laughed my head off. Isla Fisher was so funny and portrayed Rebecca really well. She is supposed to be somewhat naive as to what really happens in the “real world”. All in all I would watch this over “He’s Just Not That Into You…” anyday.
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 1:58 pm
She made me search for green scarves!
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 2:19 pm
I felt the movie strayed from the book much more than I would have ever wanted. It’s been a couple years since I read the first book, and maybe I just need to go back and read it, I don’t remember the green scarf thing. Call me crazy, but I don’t. The fashion in the movie was horrible. Talk about clashing with everything! One statement piece at a time, please. Ick! That turned me off more than anything, her clothes. And I’m a label girl! I agree with everyone else, the mannequins were terribly creepy.
What are they going to do for the sequal book “Shopaholic Takes Manhattan”? She’s already there vs. the first book taking place in England. Bummed about that too!
I also rented “He’s Just Not That Into You” on the same night as “Shopaholic” and loved HJNTIY sooo much more. I laughed my butt off. But I didn’t read that book.
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 3:22 pm
while I loved this book series I really struggled with tha movie. The two had very little in common. If you liked the book, skip the movie… Even my friends that never read the books could not get into this movie.
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 3:51 pm
what a wasted $1.07 to rent this movie.
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 3:55 pm
I loved this movie, and plan on buying it. I do agree that at times the character in the movie seemed really ditzy, but all in all it was still a good movie and I enjoyed it.
I also enjoyed ‘He’s just not that into you’ and that is now one of my fave flicks!
To each her own, I guess!
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 4:28 pm
I agree. We wasted a $1.00 (no sales tax in Oregon) on this movie. No one would hire this ditz to be a writer for ANY magazine, let alone a finance magazine. Silly movie….not worth the time to see it. SKIP IT.
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 6:30 pm
I wasted a $1.00 on this movie, also. The book was so much better. I love all the Shopaholic series and I was so disappointed in the movie.
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 6:50 pm
I loved the movie…it was cute, quirky, and a good movie for a relaxing evening at home…and I didn’t have to think about the plot to enjoy it. I feel like it was Sex and The City meets The Devil wears Prada and Legally Blonde all rolled into one fun chick flick.
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 7:29 pm
I loved this movie and maybe it’s because I am a shopaholic. I’ll admit I haven’t read the book yet, but I am so going to now. My best friend and I had an awesome time comparing me to Rebecca and vice versa. It was cute and I think she definitely repented, especially since she sold all her clothes to pay for her debt, which took courage. That sounds kind of weird and dumb to some of you but I just about died when she did it. I couldn’t even imagine doing that. Wow.
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 7:54 pm
Loved the movie…I’m a 40 year old nurse who loves to shop and watched with my 12 year old (shopper in training). We were enchanted. A great mom and daughter fantasy film that was so much fun. We have never read the books but I would totally recommend the movie…good girl who gets the prize in the end in spite of her mistakes. Good clean mom and daughter fun!!
Posted on July 8, 2009 at 10:48 pm
I did not like the movie at all, but the books on the other hand are great! If you haven’t read the books, you’re missing out. The movie did the book no justice! I was disappointed, but I had a feeling I would be by the trailer for the movie, plus, I don’t think that kind of humerous book, the way it was written, can be made into a good movie.
Posted on July 9, 2009 at 11:52 pm
I don’t know if you have ever tried watching a movie with a 2 year old boy spending 50% the time in front of you squawking about this or screaming about that but it is distracting to say the least.
That said, this movie was over-the-top funny and heart-warming. Loved it!!!
Posted on September 2, 2009 at 6:27 pm
This movie was funny and cute, liked the romance. This isn’t my kind of movie. The Time Traveler’s Wife is better, no offense. Mom and I rented this movie from the Redbox. It was mostly entertaining.