The Devil Wears Prada (2006) Review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZOZwUQKu3E

THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.

Many know that the devil dawns disguises to roam around in broad daylight and some wonder what is its top fashion. Sometimes, The Devil Wears Prada.


PLOT


Inspired by Lauren Weisberger’s novel, the 2006 film follows Andrea Sachs who lives in New York with her sous-chef boyfriend Nate Cooper. Recently graduating from Northwestern University, Andy aspires to be a journalist and scores a position to be junior personal assistant for Runway magazine’s editor in chief Miranda Priestly. Since she has a lack of knowledge in the fashion industry, she puts up with her ruthlessness until she can use the Runway connection to get her dream job. While she struggles to get along with senior assistant Emily Charlton, Miranda would also create various irrational demands for her to live up to, such as flying her back from Miami during a hurricane, hoping to see the school recital of her twin daughters Caroline & Cassidy (Colleen & Suzanne Dengel) in time. When she fails to do so, her boss berates her for it. Andy would go to Art Director Nigel Kipling for advice, who ends up helping her by giving her more stylish clothes to wear. As her confidence makes her more committed to the job, Miranda would start delegating her to more extreme tasks that make her outperform Emily, to the point of getting an unreleased manuscript of ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows’ for the twins with the assist of fellow journalist Christian Thompson. With Emily taking an extreme diet for Paris Fashion Week that endangers her health, she gets so sick that she forgets names of important guests at a charity benefit, resulting in Andy to step in and save her from embarrassment. Andy would spend so much time at said event that she would miss plans for Nate’s birthday. Because of Emily falling behind, Miranda replaces her with Andy to attend Paris Fashion Week with her. The latter would try calling her about the change of plans, but her coworker gets struck by a car on the way to work. When she gets told about it at the hospital, she resents her for it. When visiting an art gallery event hosted by her friend Lily (Tracie Thoms), the latter catches her kissing Christian, calling her out on how much she’s changed. Nate didn’t see the kiss, but he too does call Andy out that she’s become exactly what she used to ridicule, especially since she had to overhear from Lily that she was going to Paris rather than hear it from her directly. Offended, she chooses to break up with him before heading to Paris. During her time there does she get close with Miranda momentarily, feeling overwhelmed of the stress working while going through her second divorce with her husband Stephen (James Naughton) and how the publicity will affect her kids. Andy would then later celebrate with Nigel over scoring the position to be creative director for James Holt (Daniel Sunjata). She then spends the night with Christian, but would be in shock by morning to find out Miranda will be replaced by her French Runway counterpart Jacqueline Follet (Stéphanie Szostak). She tries warning her boss, but she dismisses her all the way to the luncheon where she actually announces Jacqueline will instead take the place of creative director, silently breaking Nigel’s heart. Only after the luncheon does Miranda admit she knew she was plotted to be replaced and had to sacrifice Nigel’s ambitions to preserve her position. Repulsed of realizing she committed a similar betrayal to Emily by going to Paris, she chooses to quit, throwing her work phone in the Fontaines de la Concorde. When returning to New York, she makes amends with Nate and he considers keeping in touch when sharing he got a position in Boston. Andy then gets an interview with New York Mirror and gets the journalist position she wanted especially when editor Greg Hill was impressed to know Miranda still recommended her after saying she disappointed her as an assistant. After getting the job does she call Emily and offer her the clothes she obtained in Paris. The film would end with Andy waving at Miranda who doesn’t acknowledge but smiles by the time she gets seated in her car.


THOUGHTS


If there is anything I enjoy most of cinema experiences is that they can pave the way for viewers to understand various mediums of culture. In this case, I am not a fashion fanatic of fashionista that some would say, yet I’m stunned from start to finish for what this was. Director David Frankel and writer Aline Bosh McKenna successfully immerse every type of moviegoer into something that is indeed surreal. As you look at stunning Oscar nominated costumes designed by Patricia Field, you come to accept that the fashion industry is as cutthroat/competitive as any other industry you’re familiar with. Every frame put to them thanks to cinematographer Florian Ballhaus, you feel the dedication that makes each fit even when they don’t overfocus on how they and the magazines are made. At the same time, we are also taught that no matter the line of work you’re involved with, dream job or stepping stone, you always have to maintain integrity as that helps you be true to yourself. You lose that, then you’re no different than those who don’t have a problem sacrificing that core value in life. In this world, you can be at the top of the world but cunning like Miranda, right behind to catch up like Nigel & Charlton, or be in the middle to use each working experience to apply for the spot you want to be in. Anne Hathaway is the true role model as the latter as Andy because she knows what she wants, but learns the hard way there are still to consequences to each decision you make personally. It is a good idea of her to get used to her surroundings and respect the culture she’s around, yet it still led to backlash since it still affected others in ways she wasn’t prepared for. With each day that passed, she learned that you can’t keep the old and gain the new set of friends once you grow up because they won’t always understand your work perspective completely. She did her best in being an equal to Charlton only to hate herself in betraying her unknowingly and before that, she pushed herself away from Nate. Adrian Grenier did portray the guy like a lost cause that didn’t try hard enough since he admitted they lost having things in common, but he still had a point she wasn’t losing herself in the work. While she didn’t want to hear it, it’s a good thing she did otherwise there’s no certainty if she were to still quit after the luncheon. It’s even for the best that they don’t get back together because the last thing they need is for history to repeat themselves even when having the dream jobs they wanted. Breakout Emily Blunt really was the polar opposite as Charlton because she’s arrogant enough to not regret her own sacrifices to succeed. She was starving herself so much that she didn’t have a carb until after her accident; That’s how competitive she was to everyone around her. She might not say aloud that she respected Andy’s growth, but it was quite visible for accepting the Paris clothes as an apology for what happened. Stanley Tucci made a great mentor as Nigel because he arguably perfected the balance to give the right amount of advice while still keeping his guard up for the majority. While I felt his heartache that he lost his promotion, I don’t blame him for holding it against Miranda since he knows it’s in her character as expected in their industry and knows he can’t stop her even if he wanted to. Enter the iconic Meryl Streep who scores her 14th Oscar nomination for the most cunning performance she’s ever crafted. Presumably inspired by real life editor Ann Wintour, people want to assume she’s a toxic kind of villain since it’s hard for her to display empathy as she’s mentally on the clock 24/7 and her balance is always off. It’s not about her being bad & knowing it, it’s more about how she’s got the will for her to do the absolute because she knows many like Tollet would do the same in her position, even if it includes a friend like Nigel who’s the closest she’ll have to an actual friend. I don’t even think she’s lying when she says she saw herself in Andy not off of how she was willing to give her so many chances to do absurd tasks, but a reminder you don’t always have the tough interior from the beginning to be at the top of the world, apart from her actually saying she sees beyond what people want/need. She smiled at the end because even though she was genuinely disappointed in her not following her footsteps, she respects that she’s happy being where she wanted and is glad to have met her. Lastly, if anyone is the real villain here, it’d have to be Christian because the way Simon Baker, he was too manipulative to think Miranda was gonna back down from replaced. He did say he was a big girl, but he was wrong in the how because the way she does it, it’s about holding her ground and not sucking it up. This movie is dazzling for all the right reasons, but there are still some things that have remained a little confusing over the years that have passed. Like we can all say Miranda has an iconic entrance to prove she is that bitch, but it’s totally on the limo driver not warning Emily sooner. If that’s an implication Miranda wants everyone on their toes, I wish that was clear. And god did I feel a headache over how Andy doesn’t even put an effort in not knowing how to spell ‘Gabbana’ or doing enough research before/after getting the job and before confiding to Nigel. She could’ve used the desk computer for crying out loud. It’s then on her to assume she won’t be on call when Miranda is in Miami. I mean if she’s got her doing the damnedest of things like getting her car checked or going to get surfboards for her kids, she should’ve prepared for the worst which was helping her fly back during a freaking hurricane. And if she really didn’t want to go upstairs to give her the workbook, she should’ve left it in the first table she saw. Nigel also shouldn’t think of helping Andy get clothes is a hassle when he went out of his way to get her better shoes on the first day. If anything could’ve saved her relationship with Nate, she could’ve told him that she in fact turned down a big career altering connection just to tell him ‘Happy birthday’. Lastly if I’m gonna mention any continuity errors, it’s gotta be how his wine glass disappears between takes when he reveals his intended promotion. Ignore these things however, then you can still say that The Devil Wears Prada is an elite dramedy that makes you respect fashion in more ways than one. If you like stories that are able to be thought provoking as such, check this out when you can.