‘The Devil Wears Prada’ or — Who’s the Real Monster?

I’d always assumed ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ (2006) was a scathing take-down of the fashion industry and the evil bullies who rule it. I imagined Meryl Streep played some form of demonic Cruella de Vil who mercilessly tortures her staff until we’re screaming for her head. Except, now I’ve seen the film, that’s not quite what happens with Streep’s Miranda Priestly being not only surprisingly sympathetic but one of the more likeable characters in the movie to the point it was Anne Hathaway’s Andrea Sachs I was wanting to boo and hiss at. Although the film’s biggest asshole might be Andrea’s boyfriend, Nate, who… okay, we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves but trust me, we’ll get to Nate later. So…

Andrea, “Andy”, snags the coveted job of junior personal assistant to the formidable Miranda Priestly, editor-in-chief of the prestigious Runway fashion magazine. Miranda expects perfection and total devotion. If you deliver, the world is yours. If you fail, it’s complete destruction.

Needless to say this provides plenty of scope for some extremely funny, and incredibly well written, scenes skewering power, vanity, talent and, of course, the eccentricities of designer fashion. There’s the fantastic moment where Andy gets a WELL DESERVED dressing down from Runway’s art director, Nigel (an excellent Stanley Tucci), for not giving a damn about fashion or her job — “Because this place, where so many people die to work, you only deign to work.” Yeah! You tell her, Nigel baby!

Then there’s the phone call Miranda makes when she’s stranded in Miami because of a hurricane -“My flight has been cancelled. It’s some absurd weather problem.”

Or how about Miranda’s excellent monologue about Andy’s “lumpy blue” sweater? — “And it’s sort of comical how you think that you’ve made a choice that exempts you from the fashion industry when, in fact, you’re wearing the sweater that was selected for you by the people in this room… from a pile of “stuff”.”

Although my favourite scene is the one in Runway’s conference room when Miranda is taking suggestions from her staff for next year’s season — “Florals? In spring? Groundbreaking!”

Throw in a steals-every-scene-she’s-in Emily Blunt (her silent reaction of irritated jealousy to Andy telling her Miranda finally called her by her actual name is hilarious and the way her eye-shadow changes with her fluctuating psychological states is sublime) and you’ve got a very funny comedy about dealing with a nightmare boss. Only… is Miranda a nightmare?

Not at all! She’s a talented, dedicated, hard-working woman who’s running a highly successful business! The real nightmare’s Andy who’s grudgingly taken a job she doesn’t want in an industry she actively holds in contempt. The only person more annoying than Andy is her boyfriend, Nate, who breaks-up with her because… she’s finally taking her work seriously?! He’s a condescending, immature prick riddled with double-standards. Why couldn’t he have been the one hit by a car?

Yet all this makes sense as it allows the film to delight in the absurdities of the fashion industry without mocking it too brutally or turning Miranda into a two-dimensional monster (although she is still, technically a bit of a monster). The film’s scriptwriter, Aline Brosh McKenna, said in an interview that this is less about a sadistic bully and more of a Faust story where what terrifies Andy isn’t so much that she’s turning into Miranda but that it’s not that life that Andy, personally, wants.

The film is also deeply in love with the fashion industry itself as the outfits and costumes here, and their carefully considered use, are stunning.

Still, what do I know about fashion? I buy all my clothes from charity shops. Then, again, I do live in Glasgow’s West End meaning the charity shops are exclusively filled with designer label clothing. For example — as I write this I’m currently wearing a gorgeous pink shirt with cerulean flowers that cost me £30 second-hand. Why did I pay £30 for a second-hand shirt? Because it’s Ralph Lauren, and I look fucking spectacular in it.