Devilishly good fun! Meryl Streep shines.

Rating: 8/10 (4 July 2006)

I was much more entertained by the TDWP than I expected to be. The movie took the best parts of the book, humanized the characters, and made them more 3-dimensional than they were on paper. Meryl Streep demonstrates once again why she is one of the "grandes dames" of celluloid, in a pitch-perfect portrayal of Miranda Priestley. Although Streep consistently maintains Miranda's hard edge and bitingly-comedic sarcasm throughout the movie, she also gives us glimpses into the woman behind the mask without watering-down the character the audience loves to hate. I was really pleased to see that the end of the movie refused to insult the audience's intelligence by having Miranda see the "error of her ways" and undergo a complete (and unrealistic) character transformation. Rather, she maintains her devilish charm while being wise enough to recognize--and respect--the differences between herself and her 2nd assistant, Andy.
Anne Hathaway does a really good job in TDWP, and holds her own in her scenes with Streep--no easy task, since pretty much everyone looks like an amateur next to Meryl. While Anne fittingly brings a bit of that wide-eyed innocence to the role of Andy (which made her a pre-teen sensation in the "Princess Diaries" and the like), it does not completely define her character. It was great to see Hathaway push the envelope a bit, and to show the tension between that innocence and the cutthroat sink-or-swim world of high-fashion publishing.
The rest of the cast also does an admirable job. Stanley Tucci is a gem as Miranda's long-suffering sidekick, Nigel, and Emily Blunt shows why she's a young face to watch in Hollywood. And, of course, you've got to love Simon Baker as the incurable, impossibly-handsome rake, Christian Thompson. He is the ultimate guilty pleasure in this movie; the guy you know is no good for Andy, but who is so disarmingly charming that you want to see them hook up anyway. I was not the only woman in the movie theater hoping that Andy would dump her boyfriend Nate and get together with Christian! (No small feat, since Adrian Grenier is pretty easy on the eyes as well).
The only reason I took 2 stars off this movie was the forced "reconcilation" between Andy and Nate. He had no qualms about moving to Boston to chase his dream of becoming a chef, and I don't think that Andy had any reason to be apologetic about pursuing her career goals just as fervently, whether at Runway magazine or elsewhere. To be quite honest, Nate seemed more like a whiner and an impediment than a supportive boyfriend you would want Andy to get back together with. But this is the only minor pet-peeve I have about this film. Otherwise, TDWP was a great movie that I actually enjoyed even more than the book (for a change!), and will definitely be picking up when it's released on video. Watching Meryl Streep do what she does best is worth the price of admission alone.