It’s the heroine.
Here’s a portion of a review on IMDb by CanadianWunderkind (you can link to the rest of the review).
“I’m sure you’re all familiar with the basic premise - naive small-town girl comes to the big city hoping to be a journalist, and gets a job as assistant to Miranda Priestly, the much-feared editor of ‘Runway’ magazine (a thinly veiled take on ‘Vogue’ magazine, and its editor). Thankfully, the cast was almost perfect and elevated the movie to a level it would not have otherwise reached.
“Meryl Streep is absolutely amazing as Miranda Priestly, and I especially liked the way that, as Miranda, she never raised her voice above normal speaking level. Streep has said she based this mannerism on Clint Eastwood, who as Dirty Harry talks very quietly but still intimidates. This made Miranda much more interesting than the stereotypical, screaming gorgon she could have become. She is certainly the best thing about this movie… Miranda is also made more complex (and slightly more sympathetic) than in the book, which I thought was very good. In the book, which I recently read, the author (who actually worked as an assistant to ‘Vogue’ editor Anna Wintour) was very bitter and whiny about the difficulties of her former job, and she made Miranda out to be a totally two-dimensional villain with absolutely no redeeming qualities. However, the movie shows us (briefly) a different side of Miranda - we see the compromises she has had to make to get to the top, and we see the toll this has taken on her personal life.
“I also thought that Anne Hathaway was very appealing in her role - she made Andrea more likable and less snobbish than she was in the book (although the screenwriter deserves credit for that, as well)…
“The supporting players were also very good, especially Emily Blunt (as Andrea’s caustic fellow assistant, Emily) and Stanley Tucci (as Miranda’s loyal but beleaguered right-hand man, Nigel). On many occasions, they stole scenes from the ostensibly ‘central’ character of Andrea.
“The movie, while maintaining the book’s premise, does not follow the book too closely, which I liked.”
I couldn’t say it better. The movie is a brilliant adaptation of this chicklit book. The villain of the piece, Miranda Priestly, was humanized both by the screenwriters and Meryl Streep’s interpretation of the character.
All of the above is the love part.
The hate part - Andrea’s (Anne Hathaway) immature friends. They appreciated her job when she was sharing her perks with them, but they were on her case when she didn’t do what they wanted her to do or act the way they thought she should act.
They criticized her when she changed and expanded her world view, developing some practical career smarts and competence. Yet they, themselves, were ambitious. They had dreams of their own. It annoyed me no end that when Andy actually showed an interest in what she was doing, in how the job at Runway could help her become a journalist, her friends, including her boyfriend, belittled her aspirations and called her a turncoat. Yeah, Andy had made fun of the Runway girls when she first began working there, but as time went on, she came to appreciate what they did and how hard they worked. Andy’s confidence soared thanks to Nigel’s friendship and no-nonsense advice, and her growing ability to meet Miranda’s exceedingly high expectations. Besides, Andy’s boyfriend certainly had no problem showing his appreciation when it came to bedding his new and improved girlfriend.
I think the thing I hate about the story is that in the end, Andrea walks away from it all, as if she’s better than Miranda and Nigel and Emily. She’s not. Yes, Andrea lands a job with a newspaper, thanks to Miranda (I got tired of hearing about that piece on the janitor’s union she wrote while at Northwestern). Like a good small town girl, she gets back together with said boyfriend who is off to Boston, unapologetically chasing his own dream of becoming a big-time chef.
You know, I think it just hit me…the hate part, I mean. Two very different women are shown, one a strong, powerful woman who has battled and sacrificed to become a major player in the fashion/journalism field, and she’s suffered for it. She’s called ‘the dragon lady’ behind her back. That she’s a perfectionist and expects perfection in those around her comes with the territory. The other woman, despite claiming she wants to be a journalist in the Big City, really wants to dabble around the edges. She’s more interested in pleasing her man and her friends than herself. I found the Andrea character far more interesting when she was Miranda Priestly’s assistant. It became ye olde “we all liked you better when you were poor and struggling and whiny and pathetic.”
I thought I was the only person who felt this way until my daughter said to me one day - “You know, I love The Devil Wears Prada, but the ending really bugs me. Andy walks away from a job that literally millions of women would kill for and why? Because she thinks she’s taking the moral high ground? Making a stand? No, because she’s stupid. That’s what Andy is, stupid. And who the heck is going to pay for her ticket home from Paris?”
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I’ve never thought of it that way but now you mention it, you have a valid point. It is funny how we can all read the same book or watch the same movie and catch different things.
It’s interesting, Ciara. When I first watched the film, something bothered me, but it took a while to put my finger on it. The book was a bit whiny.
I read the book when it first came. I’m not too big on chicklit however, so while it was a good read, it didn’t leave a lasting impression on me. When the movie came out, I had no interest in seeing it. No matter how much I want to be successful, I just don’t think I could stick with a job of someone treating me like dirt. There’s no excuse for that.
Delilah - the film is only loosely based on the book. Odd as it sounds, Miranda is my favorite character in the movie. She’s not a monster. She’s demanding. Andrea is whiny. Yeah, chicklit doesn’t do much for me either. Great title tho!
I think the point of Miranda is all the pressure she has on, to do the job, have the kids, make the husband happy, discern the differences between a fashion trend and a fashion flop. She has this pressure and is so focused on the goal and not getting screwed over that she forgets to be human and she becomes a parody of a high powered executive. I know someone who worked for a designer recently and she said it was much like that; you had to wear heels, no pink or orange.
Also we see the same parody of people in positions of power in the arts: fashion, film, whatever. And, as always when one has power and pressure it can be an accident waiting to happen an explosion and or constant issuance of steam upon the people with no power who you can control. We tend to exert power where we can especially since even those who believe in divine right are under the impression that they have a boss too.()-:-)}}
Steph - I love Miranda! Yes, people in power tend to abuse that power. But here’s what I always think about. When I was charge nurse in CCU and had to run all the Codes everywhere in the hospital - I gave orders from the doctor to the staff and expected to be obeyed immediately and without question. If I was the first person to arrive, then the staff did what I told them to do until the doctor got there. I didn’t yell, I was calm, cool and collected and yes, I expected my staff to be up to the task. When I had an evaluation with the head of our department, he said the one complaint my staff had was that I did not say please and thank you when asking them to do something during a Code Blue. Uh…duh. I replied, “Tell them not to hold their collective breaths.” It’s not about common courtesy, it’s about saving a life.
Oh…I couldn’t get into this book at all
Didn’t even finish it.
Evie - chicklit = whiny! The movie version is better.
Yup, it was a mixed emotions movie.
I love Meryl Streep. There’s nothing that woman can’t do.
Sandra, I’ve loved Meryl Streep in everything, except that movie based on the ABBA album, but then I thought the movie was dopey so it wasn’t her fault. She was amazing in Sophie’s Choice, The French Lieutenant’s Woman and The River Wild.