We’re halfway through the movie adaptations of the written word. It can be disappointing that I’m not doing a compare and contrast with the books and their cinematic counterparts. While it’s probably fun to compare how much a movie diverges from the source material or elaborate on concepts that the book touched on but not grasp fully. I believe that movies are an entryway to books since if one would do the opposite then the movie would have a near impossible task of being as good as the novel. In any case, for as long as there’s movies, we will always have an adaptation where nobody thought it was a book originally. Aside from that, I’ve been waiting for a long time to talk about this one.
1. Andy’s Runway Reality
I’m pretty sure everyone’s first exposure to the movie is the iconic poster. Something about the red high heels with the pitchfork is something where it makes anyone curious as to what it’s about. It caught my eye but I didn’t think much of it when I was younger. Only when I got older and finally got around to watching it where I can say it’s one of my favorite movies that I’ve seen. Of course, I wasn’t captured with the fashion on display nor could I say that I don’t get the idea that anyone could dedicate their whole life to going to Paris. What I can say that when you get down to it, it’s got an interesting story for the most part.
Based on the book of the same name by Laura Weisberger, who in fact is the inspiration for Emily, but I’m getting ahead of myself. We follow Andy as she’s recently hired to work at the elite fashion magazine Runway. She finds herself at the mercy with the editor Miranda, while also putting up with the stuckup coworker Emily. Andy finds comfort with Miranda’s assistant Nigel as she goes to adjust to the new life. We see her slowly change to the point that she alienates her friends and boyfriend. I’ll elaborate on that in a moment.
It’s hard to think that this was at the peak of Anne Hatheway’s career. She got her big shot when she starred in Disney’s The Princess Diaries. And she was everywhere, let me tell you, and I believe this was the one where she proved that she can do drama stuff that we would inevitably see her in the 2010s and now. Describing Andy is like seeing someone who is the odd one out in a new job. Her introduction highlights that as she prepares for her first day, as we see the other women being dressed in fancier attire. Like, it’s understandable that she gets put through the mental ringer but she was preparing herself for massive humiliation for working at a prestige publication.
I think what makes Andy more intriguing is when she starts to become like the other workers. For one thing is that she finds a wardrobe that’s provided by Nigel. Only after she confides to him that she’s not getting any thanks for the work that she’s doing. I like that scene in particular because Nigel is only ever good to Andy by instilling a tough love dynamic to her while not pushing her down like Miranda and Emily. In a way it’s like a calling where she gets the idea to take what she’s doing seriously instead of just coasting through it.
Immediately after is when we see Andy go through her transformation. It’s one thing where they doll her up and another where she looks very pretty in the various dresses that she wears around the office and in the streets of Manhattan. More so that she starts to take her job seriously and she begins to alienate her closest friends and boyfriend. There’s been a lot of contention of whether they were bad friends or that the job’s been invasive in Andy’s personal life. I lean towards the latter since it makes sense in this story where the friends are weirded out that Andy is completely different. More so that she prioritizes Miranda than having a personal life.
Lastly, the multiple moments between her and Emily is just comedy gold. Emily Blunt plays the character so well that I can imagine that people go to her and say that her character is the best, considering that she’s been other things that are equally noteworthy. Her attitude is just the right amount of snobbery that she belittles her and it’s never reciprocated back as Andy thinks they’re close work associates. Moreover, when she undergoes the transformation Emily lightens up a bit. I do think it was too convenient that they had to find a way for her to not make it to Paris, but it’s appropriate.
2. Miranda
Pretty sure this is everyone’s worse idea of a boss. And that everyone had to put up with someone who is literally demanding and asks for the impossible tasks that are difficult to achieve. Meryl Streep plays Miranda so well. Just her introduction is something else as everyone in the office scrambles to get adjusted. I like the attention to detail when she gets in the building, everyone avoids her like a fish avoiding a shark. Her whole character is intriguing as well since she’s not entirely as she seems initially.
One would think that a bad boss would be very loud and stubborn. One that can’t be reason with or challenged by having someone stand up for themselves. Miranda is so interesting in a way where just watching various clips of just her out of context makes it that she doesn’t seem mean or awful. What makes it work is that she has a calm demeanor and knows what she wants in a fashion sense. She doesn’t bark or shout but is very tactful with her words and that her demands are more so tests to see if Andy can accomplish them.
I think the best scene involving her is when Andy walks into the room as she and the other experts are deciding a style. Andy laughs as the worker holds up near identical blue belts. Miranda sees that and lays into her without raising her voice. Right there we see that she's a very calculating person in fashion and breaks down Andy's style. Stating that her sweater was specifically picked out years ago as Andy was unaware of it. Making the scene better is Emily in the back just loving every minute of Andy getting her posterior chewed in a brutal way.
We get more of an idea as to who she is when Andy and Nigel are together for a fashion shoot. Nigel has it down where he knows what she likes and doesn’t. What makes him interesting in the context of Miranda is that we can interpret that Nigel is the male version of Andy. Where Nigel has put so much time to knowing and doing things with her that he expects a promotion where he can finally be free. Only for that to be quashed when Miranda gives a promotion to another editor. Not only is Miranda controlling but very manipulative.
Lastly, there are moments when we see some humanizing moments that shows Miranda in a vulnerable state. It’s not shown a lot, only when Andy goes to see her when discussing a party layout in Paris. The dynamic between them is interesting where we see Andy sacrifice everything to make sure that Miranda is protected. Like, it’s hardly talked about whenever I look up any discussion between the two. I think it shows that Andy dedicated her life to Miranda that she got lost in the sauce of what she was supposed to be doing. More so that, there seems to be a mutual respect among the two when the movie nears the end.
3. Legacy
It’s hard to imagine that the movie had an impact just after the release. Just to provide some context, this came out the same time as Superman Returns. One was considered a good dramedy while the other was split among the critics. To think that this film stood the test of time while the Superman film has faded to obscurity as more films with various men of steel would appear in cellulite. I think why this movie has stuck around and made an impact is the fashion angle and the idea of how much a person can sacrifice to please a higher power. Like, we know an Andy and Miranda but we’re fascinated with seeing someone go and commit to a job to the upmost extreme.
When word got out that a sequel was being made, I was apprehensive to the idea of revisiting the characters 20 years later. There really wasn’t anything to add since everything ended well with how the film wrapped up. Inevitably, nostalgia and cash made it possible to revisit Runway for a second time. I’ve seen it, I didn’t put on my Sunday’s best but it’s weird that people would dress up in their best for 2 hours in a movie theater. As a sequel it’s just okay, nowhere near as good as the original but the dynamic is there with the characters that appear once again. Would there be another movie like this one to make an impact? It remains to be seen, but it’s a reflection of the time and one where it’s timeless.
4. Overall
The Devil Wears Prada is one of the best films of the 2000s, and one of the best adaptations of this century.
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