The Devil Wears Prada... Fendi, Gucci, Coach, Chanel.....

Rating: 7/10 (27 January 2007)

This movie was surprisingly good. I say it was surprisingly good because it didn't follow the outline I thought it would. What I figured after about 10 minutes was:
Andrea (Anne Hathaway), after getting the job at Runway magazine, would infect everyone there with her moral uprightness.
Slowly, everyone (including Miranda) would become more grounded and less shallow.
Andrea would be tempted to do something completely out of character, but after coming close to committing hypocrisy or some mortal sin, she would have an epiphany and say "no" to whatever it was.
In the end Runway would be a better company and magazine all because they hired Andrea, hence Andrea and everyone else would live happily ever after.
I'm so glad that's not how it went. In fact, if anyone was affected by the other it was Andrea. Andrea got completely wrapped up in the fashion industry although her aspirations were to be a writer. That led to her alienating her friends and family and losing her boyfriend. Then, just a day after breaking up with her boyfriend, Andrea did the unthinkable: she slept with another man. And even though she didn't stay at Runway, Runway remained the same company after she left. Miranda (Meryll Streep) continued to be the same egotistical, self-centered, patronizing, condescending dragon-lady and life went on. Now, don't get me wrong, the movie ended a bit cliché. Andrea got a job at a newspaper and even though she didn't officially get back with her boyfriend, they made ammends.
I see why Meryll Streep was nominated for an Oscar for her role in this movie, she did a phenomenal job. At first you just hate her, then eventually you respect her. The movie had a few good laughs, but nothing to slap your knee about. The ending was fairly predictable, but as I mentioned earlier, it was hardly the cliché ending I expected. It was a solid movie.