Even though I wish it were less formulaic, it's still pretty enjoyable

Rating: 7/10 (18 December 2006)

Not an especially interesting movie narratively, but the performances are so good that it's very watchable. Anne Hathaway plays a frumpy girl (Hollywood frumpy, that is  only in Hollywood could Anne Hathaway be repeatedly referred to as fat) who gets a job in the fashion industry under the cruelest exec in the biz, played by Meryl Streep. Streep has been getting pretty much all the credit for the movie. It's not entirely fair. She is indeed excellent  you just want to strangle that bitch. But the film would be utterly worthless without a strong central performance, and Hathaway supplies it. Even when the film is at its least engaging, Hathaway makes it engaging. More her presence, I suppose, than her performance. I mean, damn, she's an attractive young woman. You'd think her smile could cure cancer, or at least bring dead puppies back to life. Emily Blunt and especially Stanley Tucci also deserve a lot of credit in the main supporting roles.