''Confessions of a Shopaholic'' is a 2009 American

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typic ...

film based on the first two entries in the '' Shopaholic'' series of novels by

Sophie Kinsella Madeleine Sophie Wickham, known by her pen name Sophie Kinsella, is an English author. The first two novels in her best-selling Shopaholic series, '' The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic'' and '' Shopaholic Abroad'', were adapted into the fi ...

. Directed by

P. J. Hogan Paul John "P. J." Hogan (born 30 November 1962) is an AACTA Award-winning Australian film director and writer. Early life Hogan was born in Brisbane, Queensland. As a teenager, he lived on the North Coast of New South Wales and attended Mt S ...

, the film stars

Isla Fisher Isla Lang Fisher (; born 3 February 1976) is an Australian actress and author. Born to Scottish parents in Oman, she moved to Australia at age six where she began appearing in television commercials. Fisher came to prominence for her portrayal ...

as the shopaholic journalist and Hugh Dancy as her boss.

Plot

Rebecca "Becky" Bloomwood is a shopping addict who lives in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

with her best friend Suze. She works as a journalist for a gardening magazine but dreams of joining the 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 goes to a hot dog stand and offers to buy all the hot dogs with a check if the seller gives her back change in cash, claiming that the scarf is meant to be a gift for her sick aunt. The vendor refuses but another customer gives her the $20 she needs for the scarf. When Rebecca arrives at the interview, she's told that the position has been filled internally. However, the receptionist tells her there is an open position with the magazine ''Successful Saving'', explaining that getting a job at ''Successful Saving'' could eventually lead to a position at ''Alette'' magazine. Rebecca interviews with Luke Brandon, the editor of ''Successful Saving'' and the man who had given her the $20. She hides her scarf outside his office, but Luke's assistant comes into the office and gives it back to her. Knowing she has been caught, Rebecca leaves. That evening, she and Suze get drunk and write letters to ''Alette'' and ''Successful Saving'', respectively, but in her intoxicated state she mails each to the wrong magazine. Luke likes the letter she meant to send to ''Alette'' and hires her. Rather than completing a work assignment for a new column, Rebecca goes to a clothing sale. While inspecting a cashmere coat that she had just purchased, she realizes it is not 100% cashmere and she has been duped. This gives her an idea for the column, which she writes and submits to Luke. As Rebecca is hesitant to use her real name, Luke publishes it under the moniker "The Girl in the Green Scarf." "The Girl in The Green Scarf" becomes a huge hit among business groups, and even Rebecca's own parents advise her to read her articles. The articles are referenced in business groups in Asia, causing the ''Successful Saving'' magazine to go international. This brings much praise to Rebecca, from her peers in the workplace, and her friend Suze. "The Girl In The Green Scarf" becomes so popular that she is asked to participate in a TV interview. Rebecca meets with the editor of ''Alette'' to purchase a dress for the interview. 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, she meets a seemingly friendly woman, Miss Korch, only to learn that she is the new Shopaholics Anonymous group leader. Miss Korch forces Rebecca to donate all the clothes she just bought, not believing her when Rebecca says one of the dresses is for her friend’s wedding. After the meeting, Rebecca can't afford to buy back both dresses and buys back the interview dress, leaving the bridesmaid's dress behind. During the interview, Derek Smeath is in the audience and confronts Rebecca. ''Successful Saving'' terminates Rebecca's column after the public confrontation for bringing discredit on the magazine and believing she is a risk for not paying her debts. Suze is furious and hurt when she finds out that Rebecca lost the bridesmaid dress. Rebecca's father, Graham, is more sympathetic, remarking that the United States has not fallen despite its gigantic national debt, and offers to sell his

recreational vehicle A recreational vehicle, often abbreviated as RV, is a motor vehicle or trailer that includes living quarters designed for accommodation. Types of RVs include motorhomes, campervans, coaches, caravans (also known as travel trailers and campe ...

to help her. Rebecca declines his offer, saying that he earned the camper through years of hard work and saving, and that she will need to tackle her debts on her own. ''Alette'' offers Rebecca a position at the magazine, but she declines after realizing she’d be expected to lie to the readers. Meanwhile, Luke starts a new company, Brandon Communications. In order to earn the money to repay her debts, the members of Shopaholic Anonymous help Rebecca stage a clothes sale, which generates a lot of revenue, but not enough to retire her debts. She finally sells her green scarf when a woman bids on it for $300, making it possible for her to give all the cash to the debt collector, which she pays in pennies—to give it to him in the "most inconvenient way possible". Rebecca makes it to the wedding after reclaiming her bridesmaid dress and Suze forgives her. After the wedding, Rebecca walks past an Yves Saint Laurent store window. She is briefly tempted to buy a new purse and dress, but eventually walks away. Rebecca then runs into Luke who returns the green scarf to her, revealing that the woman who bought it was his agent. Rebecca and Luke kiss and Rebecca begins working with Luke at his new company.

Cast

as Rebecca Bloomwood * Hugh Dancy as Luke Brandon *

Krysten Ritter Krysten Alyce Ritter (born December 16, 1981) is an American actress and model. She came to prominence when she appeared as Jane Margolis in the AMC drama series ''Breaking Bad'' (2009–2010) and its spinoff film '' El Camino'' (2019). She th ...

as Suze Cleath-Stuart *

John Goodman John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is an American actor. He gained national fame for his role as the family patriarch Dan Conner in the ABC comedy series '' Roseanne'' (1988–1997; 2018), for which he received a Golden Globe Award, ...

as Graham Bloomwood *

Joan Cusack Joan Mary Cusack (; born October 11, 1962) is an American actress. She received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her roles in the comedy-drama '' Working Girl'' (1988) and the romantic comedy '' In & Out'' (1997 ...

as Jane Bloomwood *

John Lithgow John Arthur Lithgow ( ; born , 1945) is an American actor. Lithgow studied at Harvard University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before becoming known for his work on the stage and screen. He has been the recipient of numerous ...

as Edgar West *

Kristin Scott Thomas Dame Kristin Ann Scott Thomas (born 24 May 1960) is a British actress who also holds French citizenship. A five-time BAFTA Award and Olivier Award nominee, she won the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for '' Four Weddings ...

as Alette Naylor *

Leslie Bibb Leslie Louise Bibb (born November 17, 1974) is an American actress and model. Bibb first appeared on television in 1996 with minor roles in a few series, and on film in 1997 with a small role in '' Private Parts''. Her first recurring TV role wa ...

as Alicia Billington * Robert Stanton as Derek Smeath *

Lynn Redgrave Lynn Rachel Redgrave (8 March 1943 – 2 May 2010) was an English actress. She won two Golden Globe Awards throughout her career. A member of the Redgrave family of actors, Lynn trained in London before making her theatrical debut in 1962. B ...

as a Drunken Lady at Party *

Julie Hagerty Julie Beth Hagerty (born June 15, 1955) is an American actress. She starred as Elaine in the films ''Airplane!'' (1980) and '' Airplane II: The Sequel'' (1982). Her other film roles include ''A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy'' (1982), ''Lost in Am ...

as Hayley * Nick Cornish as Tarquin Cleath-Stuart * Stephen Guarino as Allon * Fred Armisen as Ryan Koenig *

Wendie Malick Wendie Malick (born December 13, 1950) is an American actress and former fashion model, known for her roles in various television comedies. She starred as Judith Tupper Stone in the HBO sitcom '' Dream On'', and as Nina Van Horn in the NBC si ...

as Miss Korch *

Clea Lewis Clea Lewis (born July 19, 1965) is an American actress, best known for her television role as Ellen's annoying friend, Audrey Penney in Ellen DeGeneres' sitcom '' Ellen''. Personal life Lewis was born in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, to a write ...

as Miss Ptaszinski *

John Salley John Thomas Salley (born May 16, 1964) is an American former professional basketball player, talk show host, and actor. He was the first player in NBA history to win championships with three franchises (since joined by Robert Horry, Danny Gree ...

as D. Freak * Lennon Parham as Joyce *

Christine Ebersole Christine Ebersole (born February 21, 1953) is an American actress and singer. She has appeared in film, television, and on stage. She starred in the Broadway musicals '' 42nd Street'' and ''Grey Gardens'', winning two Tony Awards. She has c ...

as Morning Coffee Host * Katherine Sigismund as Clare Edwards *

Michael Panes Michael Panes is an American actor, writer, musician and composer. He attended Brown University and graduated with a music degree. He has appeared in numerous off-Broadway plays and has been noted as a gifted comedian with an uncanny resemblance ...

as Russell * Kaitlin Hopkins as Event Planner *

Kelli Barrett Kelli Barrett (born January 26, 1984) is an American actress. Biography Kelli Barrett was raised by a single mother in Virginia Beach, Virginia. As a child, she showed interest in acting after seeing '' Merrily We Roll Along'' on stage. She sang ...

as Bidder in Black/Talking Mannequin * Kristen Connolly as Bidder in Pink * Ilana Levine as Manhattanite * Susan Blommaert as Orla *

Matt Servitto Matthew Joseph Servitto (born April 7, 1965) is an American actor known for his role as Special Agent Dwight Harris on ''The Sopranos'' and Trask Bodine on ''All My Children'' (1989-1990), Deputy Brock Lotus on the Cinemax series ''Banshee'' and ...

as Head Waiter *

Brandi Burkhardt Brandi Lynn Burkhardt (born June 25, 1979) is an American television and film actress, and former Miss New York. She grew up in Pasadena, Maryland and lives in Los Angeles. Biography Education She attended New York University Tisch School of ...

as Sample Size Worker *

Renée Victor Renée Victor (born June 15, 1953) is an American actress best known for her role as Lupita on '' Weeds'', for providing the voice of female argonians in Bethesda Softworks' 2011 video game '' The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim'', and she also appeared ...

as Bag Lady * Scott Evans as Chad *

Asmeret Ghebremichael Asmeret Ghebremichael is an American actress and singer, known for her work in ''Submissions Only'', ''Legally Blonde'', and '' The Book of Mormon''. Early life and education Ghebremichael grew up in Churchill, Pennsylvania, with her parents an ...

as Receptionist *

Ptolemy Slocum Ptolemy Slocum (born 20 November 1975) is an American actor, known for his role as Sylvester in ''Westworld''. Slocum was born in the Kenyan capital Nairobi. He was named after the Greek astronomer Claudius Ptolemy and has been active as an actor ...

as Borders Assistant #1 *

Jenny Powers Jennifer Diane Powers (born August 29, 1979) is an American actress, singer, and beauty pageant contestant. She won the title of Miss Illinois in 2000, and has had major roles in Broadway productions such as ''Little Women'' and '' Grease''. E ...

as Borders Assistant #2 * Anjali Bhimani as Girl #1 *

Jonathan Tisch Jonathan Mark Tisch (born December 7, 1953) is an American businessman. He is the CEO of American luxury hospitality company Loews Hotels. Tisch is also a trustee of Tufts University, and a board member of the Tribeca Film Institute. He is a co ...

as Fund Manager *

Marceline Hugot Marceline Hugot is an American stage and screen actress. She is best known for her work in the films ''Working Girl'', ''Julie & Julia'', '' To Wong Foo Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar'', '' United 93''; as well as her work on such television ...

as Saleswoman *

Bea Miller Beatrice Annika Miller (born February 7, 1999) is an American singer and actress. She came in ninth place on season two of ''The X Factor'' (US) when she was 13 years old. She was later signed to Hollywood Records. Her debut EP '' Young Blood'' ...

as Shoe Store Girl #1 *

Peyton List Peyton List may refer to: * Peyton List (actress, born 1986) Peyton List (born August 8, 1986) is an American actress and professional model, known for roles on ''Mad Men'', ''FlashForward'', ''The Tomorrow People'' and ''Frequency''. She be ...

as Shoe Store Girl #2 *

Ed Helms Edward Parker Helms (born January 24, 1974) is an American actor and comedian. From 2002 to 2006, he was a correspondent on Comedy Central's '' The Daily Show with Jon Stewart''. He played paper salesman Andy Bernard in the NBC sitcom '' The Off ...

as Garret E. Barton

Production

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. The film uses the novel's American title ''Confessions of a Shopaholic'' reinterpreting Rebecca as an American rather than

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

. According to DVD commentary, Lithgow turned down the role of Edgar West twice before accepting it. 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 New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...

, and

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

from February to May 2008. To change the ending to be more sympathetic to audiences during a time of

recession In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction when there is a general decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be triggered by various ...

, re-shoots took place in

on December 4 and 8, 2008. 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 Anna Sui (; born August 4, 1964) is an American fashion designer. She was named one of the "Top 5 Fashion Icons of the Decade", and in 2009 earned the Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America ( ...

Catherine Malandrino Catherine Malandrino is a French fashion designer. She resides between New York City, and Paris. Early life and education Malandrino was born in Grenoble in the French Alps to Italian parents. She began her professional career in Paris after a ...

and

Alberta Ferretti Alberta Ferretti (; ) is an Italian fashion designer and dressmaker. She designs for her namesake brand Alberta Ferretti, and designed for Philosophy di Alberta Ferretti until 2014. Her showroom is in Milan, Italy but her studio is in her na ...

. Several of the costumes were from the collection of French ''couture'' designer Gilles Montezin.

Reception

''Confessions of a Shopaholic'' received generally negative reviews from critics. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

the film holds an approval score of 27% based on 171 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 Materialism is a form of philosophical monism which holds matter to be the fundamental substance in nature, and all things, including mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions. According to philosophical materialis ...

and

conspicuous consumption In sociology and in economics, the term conspicuous consumption describes and explains the consumer practice of buying and using goods of a higher quality, price, or in greater quantity than practical. In 1899, the sociologist Thorstein Veblen c ...

." On

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

, 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". 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 Anne Jacqueline Hathaway (born November 12, 1982) is an American actress. The recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award, she was among the world's highest-paid actresses in 2 ...

for '' Bride Wars''. The film itself was also nominated for Choice Movie: Romance but lost to ''

Twilight Twilight is light produced by sunlight scattering in the upper atmosphere, when the Sun is below the horizon, which illuminates the lower atmosphere and the Earth's surface. The word twilight can also refer to the periods of time when this i ...

''. On its opening weekend without

Presidents' Day Presidents' Day, also called Washington's Birthday at the federal governmental level, is a holiday in the United States celebrated on the third Monday of February to honor all persons who served as presidents of the United States and, since 1879 ...

, the film opened #4 behind '' Taken'', ''

He's Just Not That Into You ''He's Just Not That Into You'' is a self-improvement book written by Greg Behrendt and Liz Tuccillo that was published in 2004 and later adapted into a film by the same name in 2009. It was a New York Times bestseller and was featured on ''Th ...

'', and ''

Friday the 13th Friday the 13th is considered an unlucky day in Western superstition. It occurs when the 13th day of the month in the Gregorian calendar falls on a Friday, which happens at least once every year but can occur up to three times in the same year. ...

'' grossing $15,054,000 in 2,507 theaters with a $6,005 average. 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.

Home media

The film was released by

Touchstone Home Entertainment Touchstone may refer to: * Touchstone (assaying tool), a stone used to identify precious metals * Touchstone (metaphor), a means of assaying relative merits of a concept Entertainment * ''Touchstone'' (album), a 1982 album by Chick Corea * T ...

on DVD and

Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of st ...

on June 23, 2009 in North America and in Australia on August 5, 2009, and on

Disney+ Disney+ is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned and operated by the Media and Entertainment Distribution division of The Walt Disney Company. The service primarily distributes films and television se ...

on September 17, 2021.

Soundtrack

The

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrac ...

of ''Confessions of a Shopaholic'' was released on February 17, 2009 under

Hollywood Records Hollywood Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label focuses in pop, rock, alternative, hip hop, and country genres, as well as specializing in mature recordings not suitable for the flagship Walt Disney Records ...

. However, an alternate track listing was posted on Tommy2.net on January 25, 2009. In the alternate track listing,

Adrienne Bailon Adrienne Eliza Bailon-Houghton (née Bailon () ; born October 24, 1983) is an American television personality, singer, and actress. She is a former member of the girl groups 3LW and The Cheetah Girls. From 2013 to 2022, Bailon was a co-host of ...

also sing "Big Spender" instead of

Girlicious Girlicious was an American girl group originally formed by Robin Antin, creator of the Pussycat Dolls, from The CW reality TV show '' Pussycat Dolls Present: Girlicious''. The group was originally signed to Geffen Records and composed of mem ...

, and

the Pussycat Dolls The Pussycat Dolls were an American girl group and dance ensemble, founded in Los Angeles, California, by choreographer Robin Antin in 1995 as a burlesque troupe. At the suggestion of Jimmy Iovine, Antin decided to take the burlesque troupe ...

sing "Bad Girl" instead of

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to th ...

featuring

Chris Brown Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. According to ''Billboard'', Brown is one of the most successful R&B singers of his generation, having often been referred to by many contempor ...

. In addition,

Ric Ocasek Richard Theodore Otcasek (March 23, 1944 – September 15, 2019), known as Ric Ocasek, was an American singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He was the primary co-lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, songwriter, and frontman for the rock ...

is said to sing " Emotion in Motion" instead, and "Music of the Sun" by

has been replaced by "Calling You" by

Kat DeLuna Kathleen Emperatriz DeLuna (born November 26, 1987) is an American singer. DeLuna began pursuing a career as a singer when she was a teenager and later signed with Epic Records. Her debut single, " Whine Up", released in 2007, went on to become ...

. Shontelle sings "

Stuck with Each Other "Stuck with Each Other" is the second solo single released by Barbadian singer Shontelle. It features R&B singer Akon and is the first single from the re-release of her debut album, '' Shontelligence''. It is also featured on the '' Confessions ...

" with

Akon Aliaune Damala Badara Akon Thiam (; born April 16, 1973), known mononymously as Akon, is a Senegalese-American singer, record producer, and entrepreneur. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of " Locked Up" (featuring Styles P ...

for the soundtrack,

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

's "Fashion" was also in the soundtrack.

References

External links

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Confessions Of A Shopaholic 2009 films 2009 romantic comedy films 2000s English-language films American romantic comedy films Films about consumerism Films about fashion in the United States Films based on British novels Films based on multiple works of a series Films directed by P. J. Hogan Films produced by Jerry Bruckheimer Films scored by James Newton Howard Films set in New York City Films shot in Connecticut Films shot in Miami Films shot in New York City Hollywood Records soundtracks Sophie Kinsella Touchstone Pictures films Works about magazine publishing 2000s American films