Vastly Unbalanced: More Devil, Please!

Rating: 5/10 (2 June 2007)

The saddest thing about "The Devil Wears Prada" is that it had the potential to be such a great film, but ends up drowning in its own mistakes. Though Meryl Streep is the referenced title character and is easily the biggest name in the film, she actually takes on a supporting role. The leading lady is really Anne Hathaway, who is the subject of corruption by the fashion industry.
The storyline of the film is rather simple. Anne Hathaway's character is a very smart, mildly attractive, and ambitious girl who aspires to be a great reporter. She eventually decides to interview for an internship under Miranda Priestly (Streep), and of course gets the job. Working beside Emily Blunt's and Stanley Tucci's characters, she finds herself becoming entwined in the fashion industry, wearing more "stylish" clothing and attending high-class parties and such. From here, a "Mean Girls" type drama plays out, turning the film on to a much more serious route. The problem is, we've seen it all before. With such a typical and obvious plot, you need a really great cast to pull it off.
Meryl Streep gives a fantastic performance as Priestly, always delivering that trademark charm and unique evil. The problem is, we don't spend enough time with her. In fact, I would have much preferred a biopic of Streep's character to this film. Emily Blunt also gives a funny performance, but she also is on-screen too little. Tucci is kind of a bore, giving the same performance he' given tons of times, and then we have Anne Hathaway. Hathaway is not a bad actress, but she is a dreadful bore in the film. The fashion bits and her romantic life are boring and uncomfortable to watch. Still, I would blame this more on the script than the actress.
Overall, "Prada" is not a terrible film. It's simply an average film where we see too little of the should-be and supposed leading lady.