Isla Fisher’s spunky camera personality is on full display in this late 2000s movie, but the lack of a good story makes the rom-com fail to be timeless.
“Vivre sans aimer n’est pas proprement vivre” says the French poet, Molière. Translated it means, “To live without loving is to not really live.”
Loving was never a problem for Rebecca Bloomwood, the protagonist of the 2009 romantic comedy “Confessions of a Shopaholic.” It was what she chose to love that was the problem.
Bloomwood, played by Isla Fisher, is a journalist who aims to work at the top fashion magazine in New York City but has a problem saying no to a designer store item. Her love for fashion trumped all other passions in her life, and the copious amount of money spent on those items – from designer handbags to high-end scarfs – led her into severe financial trouble.
Fisher’s character ironically lands a job at a financial magazine, and her editor-in-chief, Luke Brandon, played by Hugh Dancy, plays the love interest of the film. Fisher and Dancy’s character’s chemistry is undeniable. And Fisher’s comedic timing is close to perfection as comedy gets; the problem with the movie, however, is that it tackles more significant issues than it is equipped for, and the character arcs end feeling incomplete.
Isla Fisher is a rather great comedic actress; she delivers ditzy lines with a candor that makes her seem smarter than she leads on. However, her character doesn’t seem to change despite all the consequences of her shopping addiction.
When all is said and done, it’s the film’s story that is the cause for the gaping flaws. Bloomwood ruins relationships – from friendships to the romance with her boss (of which both are central to the film) – because of an addiction and the constant lies she spews to cover that addiction.
If it weren’t for Fisher’s charms and likable personality, this movie would be nearly impossible to watch. Scene after scene, people that care about Bloomwood try and help her, yet the addiction is too prevalent to be penetrated.
This makes the premise of the film tackle an issue too big for a romantic comedy undertaking: that of materialism and addiction. In every way, Bloomwood is an addict. She would rather have a shiny new bag than a romance. Even in the ending scenes, after the climax and life-lesson having been learned, she still yearns for the materialistic items she once had. Essentially, Bloomwood begins the film by getting everything she wants and ends the movie in the same way.
I’ve given the film 3 out of 5 flowers solely because of how fun it is to watch Isla Fisher act. Other than her talent, the film lacks virtues and an unmistakable character arch.
The perfect mixture of wit and romance is a formidable combination to make timeless. Sure, Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan make it look easy in their 1990s films, but they never tried to tackle the topic of addiction in those films.
Yet the director of Confessions of a Shopaholic, P. J. Hogan, decided to take both addiction and materialism on. Despite the vibrant colors and fun dialogue, it’s a sad story of a woman with an addiction that lies, and pushes away those that love her. The film’s romantic-comedy nature makes the ending happy, but the resolutions to the complex problems never complete. Sure, she sells all of her clothes to pay off the debt, but the need to purchase items to feel good is never fully addressed.
I was surprised to find out that the movie was based on the book, The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic by author Sophie Kinsella. Typically, I find that storylines based on books often are better throughout and have complex character arcs. It seems as though somewhere in the process of turning the text into a film, Rebecca Bloomwood’s virtues were lost. No romantic comedy should be diving into such murky waters as to how to come through an addiction. The film made light of the impulses, and it made me want to go shopping, rather than have learned something that the characters should have: how to control the urge.
Isla Fisher’s spiritedness is what kept me interested in the film, and I was disappointed by the situations and dialogue she was given. Nevertheless, she did the best she could with the content provided, and in the end, the film makes what is serious, lighthearted, for better or worse. With the book setting the stage, and great casting, the filmmakers are to blame for the film missing the mark.
Metaphorically speaking, the hall of romantic-comedy fame has “Confessions of a Shopaholic” on it’s honorable mentions list, but nowhere near entering the hall itself.
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