Lusting over those Christian Louboutins that could cost you an arm and a leg to buy? You’re not alone.
Back in 2008, a gaggle of teenagers broke into a string of celebrities’ homes belonging to Paris Hilton, Orlando Bloom, Rachel Bilson, Lindsay Lohan, and Audrina Patridge.
Fast forward to 2013 with Sofia Coppola’s The Bling Ring, a film based on the Vanity Fair piece written by Nancy Jo Sales that placed a microscope on the then-teenagers that had the guts to track down the homes of the celebrities they idolized and rob them.
Boo hoo, right? Coppola definitely focuses on the celebrity materialism enveloping Nicki (Emma Watson), Rebecca (Katie Chang), Chloe (Claire Julien), Sam (Taissa Farmiga), and Marc (Israel Broussard).
The ambitious teenagers look at websites, such as D-Listed and Perez Hilton, to see when these celebrities would go out of town.
Security footage shows the teenagers scaling the fences and shopping the closets of these celebrities, specifically Paris Hilton, who not only makes a cameo but also showcases the inside of her home for the filming this movie.
While the film documents the highs that come with possessing such wealth, it also chronicles the spiral of these Los Angeles-based young adults and how their minds work.
The movie’s trailer depicts the film as a glorified heist à la Spring Breakers, but the tone is more serious than what it appears because the characters actually believe what they’re trying to sell. Emma Watson’s Nicki might be a liar but there’s this earnestness about her that’s also common among her friends.
Other than the obvious preachy subtext on today’s youth, the film is a fun “I Spy…” of what’s what and who’s who in pop culture. Although the burglaries took place in 2008 (which isn’t that far in the past), it encapsulates the first decade of the millennium well.
Laugh if you must, but the iconic Juicy Couture tracksuit and the teacup Chihuahua are now associated with Hollywood, and if this is the byproduct of celebrity worshipping, what will this decade hold with social media-savvy generation?