“ If you spin out the unintended analogy of Confessions of a Shopaholic to the current financial crisis, the film starts to mutate from a not-that-funny comedy into a tragic allegory. If the carelessly spendthrift Rebecca is the equivalent of the insolvent Wall Street banks, then the characters who enable her habit—her indulgent boyfriend/boss, her infinitely patient roommate, her eager-to-help parents—must be the proponents of the watered-down bailout bill. In an attempt to save Rebecca from her own mistakes, they make too many concessions and wind up with no guarantee that she won’t lie her way into hock once again. Meanwhile, the audience, standing in for the American taxpayer, wonders, ‘Why did I pony up good money for this?’
SYMPTOMS OF STRESS
gt: what happened to symptoms of stress? bds: it's done. gt: maybe you could just send me something funny or disturbing every day instead? bds: ha. gt: i meant "and/or."
February 13, 2009
