Just too damn formulaic.

Rating: 5/10 (23 July 2008)

Disclaimer: I'm unfamiliar with the book. But my wife and I are Anne Hathaway fans, so we picked the flick up at the library to view.
Now, yes, the cast does their parts professionally, competently and with as much verve as the script allows, no error. It just seems that the film missed no opportunities to hit every single possible cliché, and there wasn't a single moment you didn't see coming a mile away:
* You know that Andrea is going to turn into a fashionista (it isn't as if Hathaway hasn't done the Ugly Duckling routine before) suddenly become Ms. Competent Workaholic with no time for her Ordinary Friends and Boyfriend, but nonetheless go back to being Sweatshirt Girl with the Serious Meaningful Job before the end.
* You know that Miranda's going to be a complete, unreasonable bitch.
* You know that there's going to be the heartwarming moment where Miranda has her own personal crisis, and you know the period of sympathy the audience momentarily has for her will be limited to the seven minutes it takes for her to pull her next screwjob.
* You know that Nate will be ordinary, down to earth and soulful (hey, he's wearing black eyeliner all around his eyes, of course he's soulful and deep) and rebel against his lady's work hours.
* You know the affable wannabe boyfriend will prove to be a user before the final reel ...
And so on, and so forth. Just about the only part I genuinely appreciated was Andrea's calm speech about how no one would bat an eye at these behaviors were they done by men, but that isn't enough to sustain a movie.
5/10, and only because the acting performances were solid.