Disappointing - read the books instead (Confessions of a Shopaholic (DVD))

Member Name: emmajt81

Product:	Confessions of a Shopaholic (DVD)
Date:	13/08/09 (11 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Slightly based on the books, Isla Fisher is a good actress

Disadvantages: Some major differences from the books, leading man miscast, not very funny

OK now being a huge fan of Sophie Kinsella's books I wasn't too sure what I was going to see when I saw this film. The books are so well written I thought it could transfer to screen really well, but whenever a film is made from a book it's never as good. And my fears were proven right.

Becky (Isla Fisher) is a shopping addict and is always spending on credit cards to buy designer clothes, and spur of the moment purchases. Eventually Becki ends up in serious debt with the bank manager calling her every day to try to recover some of the money she owes. Ironically she ends up getting a job as a journalist at a money saving magazine, and no one knows how much debt Becky has gotten herself into. She gets her own column about how to manage your money and manages to fool everyone for a while. Her boss Luke Brandon, played by Hugh Dancy, is the love interest in this and in my opinion rather miscast as the leading man. He lacks charisma and that leading man quality on screen. Kristen Scott however is great as support and has some great scene stealing moments.

Becky has to hide from her bank manager at every given opportunity, prove herself to her new boss and refrain from buying new things whilst falling in love at the same time.

The film is based on the first two books in Kinsella's series and the films has a lot of things which are not from the books in them. For example, in the film Becky gets a job and her boss is Luke Brandon, her love interest. In the books she never works with Luke, he owns his own company called Brandon Communications right from the start. He doesn't own this company til the end of the film. In the books although Becky is a shopaholic she has taste, in the film she just seems to buy anything and her fashion sense is not great. She is portrayed as a brunette in the book and Isla Fisher is a redhead. The books are set in London and Becky is English. The film is set in New York and Becky is American. When you are such a fan of a series of books you have a picture in your mind of the characters and the story. When a film changes so many things (and I have just mentioned a few) it really does spoil it for you.

If I hadn't read the books I would have thought this was a nice little romcom, albeit fairly few laughs in it (I didn't laugh out loud once). Having read the books this film is somewhat of a disappointment.

Summary: A romcom lacking in comedy - the books are miles better!