Confessions of a Shopaholic

What it’s about:

Struggling with her debilitating obsession with shopping and the sudden collapse of her income source, Rebecca Bloomwood (Isla Fisher) unintentionally lands a job writing for a financial magazine after a drunken mailing 'incident'. Rebecca's surprising aptitude for financial journalism garners her critical acclaim, public approval, and the admiration of her supportive boss Luke (Hugh Dancy). But as she draws closer to her ultimate goal of writing for renowned fashion magazine Alette, she questions her true ambitions.


What we thought of it:

Ever experience that overwhelming feeling of happiness you get when you buy that pair of shoes you had your eye on for ages, and it's finally yours? Trust me when I say this, we all can relate to Rebecca's "plight".

Anyone who loves fashion and shopping will get it. Think Gucci, Prada, Guess, Louis Vuitton (yes, even the fakes ones), Jimmy Choos and all other labels of love. Rebecca puts that feeling perfectly when she says "You know that thing when you see someone cute and he smiles and your heart kind of goes like warm butter sliding down hot toast? Well that's what it's like when I see a store. Only it's better."

You’ll remember Isla (fiancée to Sasha Baron Cohen) as the neurotic "daddy’s girl" in Wedding Crashers with her insane attempts to ensnare Vince Vaughn's Jeremy. Now take that same quirky character, add a dash of perseverance and a bit more panache (as far as her wardrobe is concerned) and you have Rebecca Bloomwood. She is a slave to fashion (like most women are… and I’m speaking from experience here) even if it drowns her under mounds of debt.

The movie addresses what "shopaholics" regard as a "I just had to have it" feeling (again speaking from experience here, especially when spotting a sale banner hanging in the window of a Nine West store). Sure, reality catches up with us at some point, and soon bills need to be paid. But how can you blame Rebecca's indulgence when she’s living in New York, a city that has a sale every time you blink? Fate soon lands her in a position not befitting a respected financial "whiz". Talk about ironic. But with her cute editor (a rather luscious-looking Dancy) at her side, she knows anything is possible, and has to risk it all to face up to her crippling habit.

Throw in a nasty debt collector who Rebecca avoids at every cost, a bitchy rival (Leslie Bibb), supportive friends, counselling from Shopaholics Anonymous, and you have a romcom guaranteed to keep you laughing, despite the fact that Rebecca's behaviour refects the problems of reckless spending and easy credit that have plunged the world into the current recession.

The storyline is really predictable. But now and then you need to be taken away from your financial woes and just let it be. You’ll become so entranced by Rebecca's world that everything else just seems mundane for that moment.