Two out of Five stars
Running time: 115 mins

A disappointing romcom that suffers from an irritating lead character, an under-used supporting cast, a largely unfunny script and a cluttered, unsatisfying plot that's at least 30 minutes too long.

What's it all about?
Confessions of a Shopaholic is based on the popular series of chick-lit novels by Sophie Kinsella and stars Isla Fisher as ditzy New York singleton Rebecca Bloomwood, who shares a flat with her best friend Suze (Krysten Ritter) and dreams of a job on a fashion magazine. Instead, she winds up as a journalist for a financial magazine run by handsome editor Luke Brandon (Hugh Dancy), where she quickly captures the public's imagination as a columnist known as The Girl With The Green Scarf, despite knowing next to nothing about finance.

Meanwhile, Rebecca also has to deal with a massive shopping addiction, a mountain of unpaid bills and the attentions of a pushy debt collector (Robert Stanton as Derek Smeath), while hoping that no one at work uncovers the hypocrisy of a debt-laden shopaholic giving financial advice.

The Bad
It would be nice to be able to say that Confessions of a Shopaholic was a subtle indictment of the financial irresponsibility that led to the current credit crunch, but sadly, that's not really the case and the scriptwriters are more concerned with pratfalls and vaguely tasteless jokes about addiction (e.g. a scene where Rebecca accidentally causes her entire Shopaholics group to relapse by talking about how great shopping is).

It doesn't help that Rebecca is a deeply irritating, horribly self-obsessed character to begin with. Isla Fisher has been adorable and funny elsewhere, but she struggles painfully here and there's zero chemistry between her and Dancy to boot.

The Worst
On top of that, the film wastes a talented supporting cast, to the point where you really feel sorry for them, particularly Joan Cusack, who, rather shockingly, is playing Fisher's mother.

Worth seeing?
Confessions of a Shopaholic is a disappointing romcom that fails to push any of the required emotional buttons, thanks to a sloppy, unfocussed script and a central character who's impossible to care about.