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Confessions of a Shopaholic (film)

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Confessions of a Shopaholic
Theatrical release poster
Directed byP. J. Hogan
Screenplay by
Based onConfessions of a Shopaholic and
Shopaholic Takes Manhattan
by Sophie Kinsella
Produced byJerry Bruckheimer
Starring
CinematographyJo Willems
Edited byWilliam Goldenberg
Music byJames Newton Howard
Production
companies
Distributed byWalt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Release date
  • February 13, 2009 (2009-02-13)
Running time
104 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$44 million[1]
Box office$108.3 million[2]

Confessions of a Shopaholic is a 2009 American romantic comedy film based on the first two entries in the Shopaholic series of novels by Sophie Kinsella. Directed by P. J. Hogan, the film stars Isla Fisher as the shopaholic journalist and Hugh Dancy as her boss.

Plot

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Shopping addict Rebecca Bloomwood lives in New York City with her best friend Suze and works as a journalist for a gardening magazine, but dreams of joining fashion magazine Alette. On the way to an interview with Alette, she tries to purchase a green scarf, but her credit card is declined. Rebecca offers to buy all the hot dogs from a hot dog stand with a check if the vendor gives her back change in cash, claiming that the scarf is a gift for her sick aunt. The vendor refuses but another customer gives her the $20 she needs for the scarf.

Rebecca arrives and learns that the position has been filled internally, but that there is an open position with the financial magazine Successful Saving. Rebecca is interviewed by Successful Saving's editor, Luke Brandon; the man who had given her the $20. She hides the scarf outside, but Luke's assistant enters the office and returns it to her. Knowing she has been caught, Rebecca leaves.

That evening, she and Suze, while intoxicated, write letters to Alette and Successful Saving, but she drunkenly mails each respective letter to the wrong magazine. Luke, impressed by the letter intended for Alette, hires her. As Rebecca is hesitant to use her real name, Luke publishes her writing under the moniker "The Girl in the Green Scarf." Rebecca's column becomes a huge hit among business groups, and even Rebecca's own parents advise her to read her articles. The Successful Saving magazine eventually goes international, bringing much praise to Rebecca from both Suze and her workplace peers. After being asked to participate in a TV interview, Rebecca meets with the editor of Alette to purchase a dress for the occasion.

Rebecca later returns home to renewed confrontations with her debt collector, Derek Smeath. Suze makes her attend Shopaholics Anonymous. After purchasing dresses for her interview and Suze’s wedding, the new Shopaholics Anonymous group leader forces her to donate all her new clothes. Unable to afford to keep both dresses, Rebecca buys back the interview dress, much to Suze's dismay. During the interview, Derek, in attendance, confronts Rebecca about her debt. Successful Saving subsequently terminates Rebecca's column for bringing discredit on the magazine.

Rebecca's father is sympathetic to her plight and offers to sell his recreational vehicle to help her. She declines, saying that he earned the camper through years of hard work and saving and that she needs to take responsibility for her own actions. Rebecca is offered a position at Alette, but declines after learning she would be expected to lie to readers. Meanwhile, Luke starts a new company, Brandon Communications.

In order to generate enough revenue to repay her debts, fellow Shopaholic Anonymous members help Rebecca stage an auction for her used clothing. She finally earns enough to pay back all her debt when she sells her green scarf for $300, giving the money to Derek entirely in pennies to make it as inconvenient for him as possible.

After reclaiming her bridesmaid dress, Rebecca arrives to Suze's wedding, where the two reconcile. After the wedding, Rebecca walks past a store window and is briefly tempted to make a purchase, but ultimately walks away. Rebecca then runs into Luke, who returns the green scarf to her, revealing that the woman who bought it was his agent. They kiss, and Rebecca begins working with Luke at his new company.

Cast

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Production

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The film adapts the two books The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic and Shopaholic Abroad which in the United States were known as Confessions of a Shopaholic and Shopaholic Takes Manhattan respectively.[3] The film uses the novel's American title Confessions of a Shopaholic reinterpreting Rebecca as an American rather than English.

According to DVD commentary, John Lithgow turned down the role of Edgar West twice before accepting it. Fred Armisen was approached for the West role after Lithgow initially turned it down, but after Lithgow changed his mind, the Ryan Koenig role was written for Armisen. Ed Helms was cast as Derek Smeath but scheduling conflicts prevented him from taking the role. He shot the Garret role in one day.

Filming took place in New York, Connecticut, and Florida from January to May 2008.[4][5] To change the ending to be more sympathetic to audiences during a time of recession, re-shoots took place in New York City on November 24 and 28, 2008.[6]

Production on the film also included creating a group of faux upscale brand stores at the base of the Hearst Tower. Present were brands such as Valentino, Anna Sui, Catherine Malandrino and Alberta Ferretti. Several of the costumes were from the collection of French couture designer Gilles Montezin.[7]

Reception

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Confessions of a Shopaholic received generally negative reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an approval score of 26% based on 170 reviews, with an average score of 4.40/10. The site's consensus reads: "This middling romantic comedy underutilizes a talented cast and delivers muddled messages on materialism and conspicuous consumption."[8] On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film holds an average score of 38 based on 30 reviews, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[9]

Isla Fisher's performance generated good reviews and she was nominated for Choice Movie Actress: Comedy at the Teen Choice Awards 2009, but she lost to Anne Hathaway for Bride Wars. The film itself was also nominated for Choice Movie: Romance but lost to Twilight.

On its opening weekend without Presidents' Day, the film opened #4 behind Taken, He's Just Not That Into You, and Friday the 13th grossing $15,054,000 in 2,507 theaters with a $6,005 average.[10] As of May 22, 2009, the film grossed $44,277,350 at the domestic box office, while its worldwide box office is $106,904,619.[11]

Home media

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The film was released by Touchstone Home Entertainment on DVD and Blu-ray on June 23, 2009 in North America and in Australia on August 5, 2009, and on Disney+ on September 17, 2021.

Soundtrack

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"Fashion (Lady Gaga song)" redirects here. Not to be confused with Fashion!.
Confessions of a Shopaholic
Soundtrack album by
Various artists
ReleasedFebruary 17, 2009
Recorded2008
Genre
Length46:44
LabelHollywood

The soundtrack of Confessions of a Shopaholic was released on February 17, 2009 under Hollywood Records.[12] However, an alternate track listing was posted on Tommy2.net on January 25, 2009.[13] In the alternate track listing, Adrienne Bailon also sing "Big Spender" instead of Girlicious, and the Pussycat Dolls sing "Bad Girl" instead of Rihanna featuring Chris Brown. In addition, Ric Ocasek is said to sing "Emotion in Motion" instead, and "Music of the Sun" by Rihanna has been replaced by "Calling You" by Kat DeLuna. Shontelle sings "Stuck with Each Other" with Akon for the soundtrack, Lady Gaga's "Fashion" was also in the soundtrack.

"Fashion"
A 17-second sample of "Fashion", where Gaga sings the chorus.
Problems playing this file? See media help.
Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
No.TitleWriter(s)PerformerLength
1."Accessory"
Jordyn Taylor3:06
2."Fashion"
Lady Gaga2:51
3."Blue Jeans"
  • Jessie James
  • Julian Bunetta
Jessie James3:56
4."Uncontrollable"
Adrienne Bailon3:30
5."Calling You"
  • RedOne
  • Frankie Storm
  • Kat DeLuna
Kat DeLuna3:20
6."Stuck with Each Other"Diane WarrenShontelle feat. Akon3:20
7."Unstoppable"
Kat DeLuna3:49
8."Big Spender"
Adrienne Bailon3:49
9."Bad Girl"
The Pussycat Dolls2:27
10."Again"
Natasha Bedingfield3:57
11."Takes Time to Love"
  • Dean
  • Brown
  • Jones
  • Dalton
  • Taylor
Trey Songz2:45
12."Girls Just Want to Have Fun"Robert HazardGreg Laswell2:37
13."Don't Forget Me"Harry NilssonMacy Gray2:37
14."Shopaholic Suite"James Newton HowardJames Newton Howard4:40
Total length:46:44

References

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  1. ^ "Confessions of a Shopaholic (2009)". The Wrap. Archived from the original on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  2. ^ Confessions of a Shopaholic (2009). Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 18, 2010.
  3. ^ Full cast and crew for 'Confessions of a Shopaholic' (2009). IMDb. Retrieved June 12, 2009.
  4. ^ Kit, Borys (March 12, 2008). "Five more for Shopaholic". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on September 6, 2008. Retrieved April 25, 2008.
  5. ^ Box office / business for 'Confessions of a Shopaholic' (2009). IMDb. Retrieved June 12, 2009.
  6. ^ "Luxury Shame | Print Article | Newsweek.com". Newsweek. December 5, 2008. Archived from the original on December 5, 2008. Retrieved March 22, 2021.
  7. ^ Kristin (February 17, 2009). "Fashion Week - I met Gilles Montezin!". The Clothes Coach. Archived from the original on July 16, 2011. Retrieved June 24, 2009.
  8. ^ Confessions of a Shopaholic Movie Reviews, Pictures. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved April 5, 2022.
  9. ^ Confessions of a Shopaholic Reviews, Ratings, Credits. Metacritic. Retrieved February 19, 2009.
  10. ^ "Weekend Box Office for February 13-15, 2009". Box Office Mojo. February 15, 2009. Retrieved February 16, 2009.
  11. ^ "Confessions of a Shopaholic (2009)". The Numbers. June 22, 2009. Retrieved June 22, 2009.
  12. ^ "Confessions of a Shopaholic". Amazon.com. February 17, 2009. Retrieved December 15, 2009.
  13. ^ "Tommy2.net". January 25, 2009. Retrieved June 12, 2009.
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