Harry's nearly better now but I've got swine flu now :(
Harry's nearly better now but I've got swine flu now :(
Member since:12.04.2007
Reviews:448
Members who trust:191
I actually read the book which was the basis for this film last spring, before I knew that they were turning it into a Hollywood blockbuster. I really enjoyed the book, and found it laugh-out-loud funny, so I had really high expectations for the film, especially when I read that both Meryl Streep and Stanley Tucci were going to be starring in it. So here goes my review of The Devil Wears Prada.
As previously mentioned, the film is based on the book of the same name, written by American author Lauren Weisberger. It tells the story of a young budding journalist called Andrea (Andy as we know her in the film), who gets a job working for New York's fashion bible Runway as assistant for the magazine's editor, Miranda Priestly. However, the job isn't exactly what Andy thought it would be. Miranda expects Andy to be on call 24/7, running to get her coffee at 6.15am, get hold of impossible book manuscripts for her young twin daughters and memorising the entire guest list for her magazine parties which is just 2 hours away.
Although the main plot of the movie is an assistant doing the job millions of girls would kill for, albeit working for the boss from hell, there is a more serious and deeper meaning to this film which runs throughout and comes to a conclusion at the end. Andy is a smart University graduate with promising journalism prospects and although this role is not her ideal job, the deeper meaning is that she finds her identity whilst doing the job, but not before almost changing into someone she doesn't really want
to be. Andy starts to become disassociated from her friends and family when she starts to experience the culture of a company which prides itself on image and skin-deep beauty. It soon becomes apparent that her morals become insignificant compared to a pair of Jimmy Choo's and Calvin Klein outfits and the film follows her struggle to hang onto her previous ideals before she's consumed by the materialistic society around her.
Anne Hathaway takes on the role of Andy, and does a superb job. Anne does a great job in showing the difference between Andy at the beginning of the movie, and her journey to the person she becomes by the end, both through her acting of Andy's personality and the way she carries herself, to the outfits and hairstyles she wears. She is quite quirky and funny to watch, and seems to have a good on-screen chemistry with the other leading actress, the marvellous Meryl Streep. Streep really makes the role her own, acting with a real belief of superiority for her character and the delicate balance of being the devil-boss and letting Miranda's human side show through ever so slightly. Meryl Streep's normally friendly and soft features are transformed via the use of a Cruella DeVille-esque wig which brings a real intimidating quality and sterness to her character, allowing you to leave behind any preconceptions you have of Meryl Streep you may have had before watching this. Oh, and Meryl Streep was actually nominated for an Oscar for her role, but sadly she didn't win it!
The other stand out part for me was played superbly by Stanley Tucci, and that was of Runway's designer Nigel. He starts off as a very shallow, harsh and inaccesible character but we see him adopt a role of mentor which allows us a brief glimpse of how first impressions can be wrong and that it's not a good idea of pre-judge people before you really get to know them, as Andy finds out! Brit actress Emily Blunt also does a great job in her role as Emily, Miranda's other assistant who seems to think she is superior to Andy, and is focusing her whole life on the trip she will take to Paris with Miranda, going so far as to eating just a cube of cheese to slim down for the Couture gowns!
For people that have read the book, you will notice quite a few things have changed, and these niggled at me throughout the whole film. Probably the biggest one was changing Andy's boyfriends name from Alex in the book to Nate in the film. There is no apparent reason for this film, and this only serves to make people question what the point was?! Also, they have changed his job from a teacher to a chef, so really he isn't the same person in the book as he is in the film at all! The other major thing I noticed was that Miranda's assistant wasn't British in the book, yet she is in the film, but this works well in the film with Emily Blunt taking on the eccentric Emily perfectly. Her Britishness really only adds to her quirkiness!
One other thing I noticed about the film was it's soundtrack. There were some really good songs used throughout, including the well used Vogue by Madonna, and also Jump by Madonna, Suddenly I See by Brit-singer KT Tunstall, City of Blinding Lights by U2 and Crazy by Seal. It worked well with the modern setting of the film, and it was nice to have songs that you knew and could sing along to.
Overall, this is a very enjoyable film, probably more so for people who haven't read the book. I found that I kept noticing the differences and parts they had obviously cut out from the book to make the movie an acceptable length. However, my partner who hasn't read the book and really enjoyed it, a lot more than me as he obviously didn't notice the changes and didn't miss any of the bits which weren't included. Anne Hathaway and Meryl Streep work incredibly well together, creating a good on-screen relationship and both making big journeys throughout the film. I found it laugh-out-loud funny in parts, it is a good comedy film with the more serious elements running through, and is overall a good book adaptation.
The film was directed by David Frankel and the book was turned into a screen-play from Aline Brosh McKenna, from the book by Lauren Weisberger. The film runs for 109 minutes and has a PG certificate in the UK. You can buy the DVD on Play.com for just £5.99, I would say you would be pleased with your purchase if you bought it for this price! Special features on the DVD include Deleted scenes, Trailer, 6 Featurettes and a gag reel. However, I haven't seen these so I can't comment on them.
Main Cast: Meryl Streep ... Miranda Priestly Anne Hathaway ... Andy Sachs Emily Blunt ... Emily Stanley Tucci ... Nigel Simon Baker ... Christian Thompson Adrian Grenier ... Nate
Thank you for reading.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Comedy - Director: Tony Dow - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: John Challis, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst, Tessa Peake-Jones, Gwyneth Strong
Comedy - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Tessa Peake-Jones, Buster Merryfield, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst
Based on the hilarious best-selling novel, this stylish and funny movie starring Meryl ... more
Streep and Anne Hathaway is a sensational must-see.As assistant to impossibly demanding New York fashion magazine editor Miranda Prestly (Streep), young Andy Sachs (...
![The Devil Wears Prada [DVD] [2006]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78188044.jpg "The Devil Wears Prada [DVD] [2006]")
exceptional by (5%):
very helpful by (95%):
