Those who can’t do, teach. Whether that saying holds any validity is yet to be determined, but its resonance does sound in the shallow (but enjoyable) pool of “”Confessions of A Shopaholic.”” Hopefully you weren’t expecting an Oscar for this one.
Isla Fisher (“”Wedding Crashers””) drapes herself in the many questionable fashion trends of Rebecca Bloomwood, the one who can’t, so she teaches. She’s a professed shopaholic with an outstanding debt of 16 grand. Under constant harassment from her very creepy debt collector (with an equally creepy name), Derek Smead, Bloomwood is forced to find a job after her position in a small-time gardening magazine goes down the drain.
She lands a job (accidentally) as a journalist for finance and savings; the boss liked her style, and now she’s writing a multinational column on how to manage money properly in a language the public can understand.
In those moments when Bloomwood seems most unbelievably over the top, in steps her perfect counter-character, the charming English boss, Luke Brandon, with puppy-dog-blue eyes and an innate sense of style (you’ll find out why later), played by Hugh Dancy (“”The Jane Austen Book Club””).
Naturally, a little romance blossoms beneath the shade of the ever-predictable dating-my-boss motif. And naturally, Bloomwood’s bulging closet housing her deep dark secrets of financial distress waits to balloon out and stifle those closest and inevitably, in the way – best friends, lovers and the like.
But don’t distress! While Bloomwood and Brandon’s rooftop face-smash couldn’t have been more artificial than her 50% off polyester jacket (5% cashmere), the characters settle into believable personalities as time wears on.
Accepting the eccentricities, who wouldn’t want mom and dad (Joan Cusack and John Goodman) sitting at the table with the potential boss and possible dream-job promotion, weighing the pros and cons? Does the benefit of working for fashion mag Alette out-weigh the cost of losing love? There are some things money can’t buy, but for everything else, Bloomwood will be the first to tell you, there’s Mastercard.
Rating: ***
