Surprisingly enjoyable with strong performances by Anne Hathaway and Meryl Streep

Rating: 7/10 (2 January 2007)

Fresh from college, Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway) comes to New York in hopes of being a journalist. Instead, she accepts a job as a personal assistant to the demanding Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep), editor in chief of the fashion magazine Runway, who forces Andy to compromise her ideals if she ever wants to make it in publishing.
One of the most pleasant surprises of the year, The Devil Wears Prada is a wonderful comedy that will work for everyone. The screenplay is simple yet still engaging and it really relates to anyone who has had a mean boss in their lives. If you don't like fashion, that's okay since fashion is really just the backdrop to the story. The first half of the film is consistently good with many funny lines and scenes. It then slows down a bit and it becomes more serious. The sudden shift in tone is unexpected yet it is still handled well. The ending is kind of disappointing but not in a alarming bad way so it doesn't subtract from the quality of the movie.
Director David Frankel did an okay job behind the camera although he did keep it safe so the movie was pretty predictable. There were also a few things I didn't like about the film. The relationship between Andy and Nate was handled poorly and the two of them did not go well together. The ending wasn't very good because of the outcome of their relationship, it just felt unnatural and they should have just been friends in the end. The other thing was the message of the movie. It kind of felt like they were saying, "if you can't beat them, join them". I don't think the film really showed that you can be yourself and still succeed at any job unless that wasn't the point. However, I still think that was the point since the screenplay actually had some depth to the characters and I'm hoping it wasn't a shallow film.
The acting was great with Meryl Streep being the highlight of the movie. She was fantastic as Miranda and she deserves an Oscar nomination. Anne Hathaway was also pretty good and she manages to keep up with Streep. Honestly, some of the performances were a bit over the top and Hathaway had to give a subtle performance in which she delivered. Emily Blunt was good as Emily although I don't think she deserves a Golden Globe nomination. It was a funny performance but a little too over the top and not a role that demanded too much from the actress. She was better in My Summer of Love. Simon Baker was just creepy and I didn't like his performance at all. Stanley Tucci was great and it was refreshing to see that his character wasn't just an annoying stereotype. Adrian Grenier was alright although he didn't look too good with Hathaway. Overall, I enjoyed The Devil Wears Prada. It was very entertaining and it's worth checking out. Rating 8/10