The Devil Wears Prada (2006) – Her Review August 13, 2006

Dir. David Frankel

Starring Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, Stanley Tucci

Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway), a young journalist trying to break into the publishing business, gets a break as 2nd assistant to Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep) cutthroat and evil editor of Runway Magazine. Although Andy professes to know nothing about fashion (this movie actually has her dressed like she’s just fallen off the turnip truck … does anyone dress that conservatively?) and thinks that anything to do with the trade is superficial. She takes the job as she believes it’s a good stepping stone to other more important and valuable jobs in the future.

Miranda is quite the tyranical boss, she displaces lots of air. When she says jump, people jump… everyone around her has frazzled nerves… including our young new assistant. Surprisingly, after a bit of a bad start, Andy realizes that, heck, she not only can do the job well, she enjoys it and the benefits that come with it. As she says, she’s still the same old Andy, just dressed better.

Her friends, though, treat her like she’s become some terrible person because she wants to get ahead although we plainly see that she has not turned into a snob, nor has she become either selfish or an airhead.

Warning: spoilers ahead

This movie could have been really smart and fun… but sadly it was full of tired and expected clichés and we just don’t get the satisfaction of Andy putting her friends in their place because of their jumping to conclusions about her nor does she ever get angry at her heartless boss. Instead of her getting some fabulous promotion and staying in the fashion world, we see her not only go back to her boyfriend but she practically grovels and begs forgiveness for having even desired an exciting career. How dare she, huh?

We also see her get the type of job she wanted in the first place before she had a taste of this new kind of life. It was almost as if the movie was saying… yes, working in the fashion business is not exciting, not interesting, is full of stupid people who are completely superficial. Yeah, right!… and I wouldn’t like to go to Paris a few times a year and watch the newest fashions roll off the runway; but no, … not our Andy, she’s learned her lesson.. be as little as your boyfriend allows you to be and of course, also be plain (yes, all she’s learned about fashion is thrown out the window) as she goes back to being schlumpy looking because that means you’re smart and care about your friends. Give me a break!

Apparently, The Devil Wears Prada should have switched designers!

This is Her review, you can read His review here

Keywords: Sex and the City, Fashion, Vogue

The Devil Wears Prada (2006) – His Review August 13, 2006

Dir. David Frankel

Starring Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, Stanley Tucci

The Devil Wears Prada is about Andrea (Hathaway), who lands a job as assistant for an infamous editor (Streep) at a fashion magazine. She considers it a stepping stone for something bigger, better, and more “her”, since she thinks it’s all mostly superficial nonsense. And don’t we all, eh?

We follow the young crumpet as she slowly begins to learn the inner workings of the business. She finds the people a lot less superficial than they first appear (duh), and begins to actually enjoy, and be good at her work. She also sees the merit that any work within the publishing business (if only in fashion) can have for her future work as a journalist.

Major spoilers ahead

This is where the movie drops the ball. As Andrea begins to find herself, and her feet, all her friends turn on her. Suddenly we see how superficial and one-dimensional they actually are. They pretty much sever Andrea’s link to the real world, leaving her to be eaten up by the fashionistas. She manages though, really well actually, but finally decides to come crawling back to her “friends” and beg forgiveness.

I mean what the hell!?

Who is this movie catering to? You can’t be on both sides of the fence without some majorly sore balls! I just don’t know.. Maybe they’re not imagining anyone actually following the storyline, since they’ll be too busy looking at the pretty clothes? That’s my major complaint anyway, the rest of it works for me. I mean it’s not brilliant in any way, and the music may be fantastically derivative, but it is just a movie. I’m pretty sure it gets it’s fans a good laugh and some topics of conversation.

This is His review, you can read Her review here

Keywords: Sex and the City, Fashion, Vogue