THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA (2006) Movie Review | Meryl Streep | Anne Hathaway

Added: 2026-05-05

[00:00:00]All she has to do is start dressing better for Miranda to actually pay attention to her, >> take her seriously. Yeah.

[00:00:05]>> Eventually learn her name.

[00:00:08]>> Since Alonzo and I are so stylish and so up on the latest in fashion and we got dressed up for you to talk about the original The Devil Wears Prada, the sequel's coming out this week. We wanted to go back and revisit the first one.

[00:00:22]It's been 20 years. Uh, and I had not seen this movie since it came out in 2006. I don't know if you have revisited it, but is infinitely memeable as we see.

[00:00:32]>> I was going to say I hadn't either, but I I feel like I' I've been watching it all along because it's so often referenced and quoted on the internet, you know.

[00:00:39]>> Yeah, for sure. So, come hang out and subscribe because we love to go back and do throwback reviews or when there's like a remake or a sequel, we'll go back and do the original. We like to go back and do these things called Was It Great or Were You Eight where we revisit films from our childhood to see if they hold up. So, if you love that kind of thing too, come hang out with us. Alonzo, what's the Devil Wears Prada about?

[00:01:00]>> Miranda Priestley is the editor and chief of Runway.

[00:01:03]>> So, you don't read Runway?

[00:01:05]>> No. Not to mention a legend.

[00:01:07]>> And before today, you'd never heard of me?

[00:01:09]>> No.

[00:01:10]>> Anne Hathaway plays a recent graduate from Northwestern who has a really great journalism program. Famously, she edited the Daily Northwestern and she's moved to New York to make her fortune as a journalist. But, you know, the jobs just aren't there. It's 2006 after all, and it's so hard to get a job in the media.

[00:01:29]Um, she winds up getting assigned to be the assistant to the assistant of Miranda Priestley, the fearsome editor-inchief of Runway magazine. Andy has zero interest in fashion and kind of rolls her eyes the whole thing. But everybody keeps telling her, "Look, stick it out. If you can work with Miranda for a year, you can write your own ticket in the business." So, she grits her teeth and gets along and and and tries to make a go of it, working under uh Emily Blunt uh as as the the fearsome and ambitious assistant to Miranda Priestley. Along the way, uh fairy godmother Stanley Tucci gives her a makeover and glams up her her sense of style and outfits and um she finds herself more and more at world in the at home in the world of fashion that she had previously shunned. But at what cost? At what cost? Um will she >> will she will she sell her soul and abandon her friends who are terrible by the way, but we'll get into that. Um for success, you know, you got to see the movie to find out, and you probably already have. Uh you know, there's so much about this movie that is so great.

[00:02:37]I mean, it it is so quotable. You know, we talk about the ceruan sweater speech all the time. It is it is an amazing encapsulation of the way that things can go from like the intense odd artness of like a couture runway show to filtering down to you know what you are buying off the rack at you know Marshalls. Um you know and and it it covers a lot of stuff. Stre obviously giving this wonderfully imperious performance. Um, but what bugged me about this movie in 2006 still bugs me, which is the friends and the boyfriend are [ __ ] Here's the thing. If you're in your 20s and you have moved to New York to make it in your chosen profession, then you need to be prepared for some nights and weekends, like you are going to be the low person on the totem pole. You're going to get treated like [ __ ] You're going to have to work the worst hours.

[00:03:33]And everybody is in that same boat, and everybody needs to be understanding of everybody else in that same boat. But no. Oh, you missed your boyfriend's birthday.

[00:03:42]Like they they give her such a hard time about this [ __ ] >> And it's like, why aren't all of you at work? You know, the the boyfriend even has a line about, "Oh, we spent a whole semester on potatoes." And that's the kind of thing that if you're not in the culinary world, you might go, "Whoa, what a waste of time that was." You know? So, for them to be that way about her working for this fashion magazine, it's the same thing. It's like, "No, shut up. I'm getting somewhere in my career." If somebody says work for this woman for a year and you can write your own ticket, then you [ __ ] work for her for a year.

[00:04:13]>> So that's ridiculous.

[00:04:15]The whole like Andy sells her soul dilemma, which is that she opts to go to Paris when Emily can't is ridiculous because first of all, it's presented that if she says no, she also will not get taken to Paris. And second of all, Emily gets hit by a car anyway and can't go. So whatever onus is on her for having made that decision is she is relieved of. So to then present that as the tipping point of like oh nope you're a monster too is ridiculous. And then of course finally there is the recurring thing of Anne Hathaway is so [ __ ] fat and ugly and gross. Can you even believe it? Which is ridiculous on its face.

[00:04:53]>> Well that's a joke. That's a joke about the extreme standards of the fashion world. Anne Hathaway who's like tall and thin is considered fat.

[00:05:02]those extreme standards. That's the problem. I'm not saying they had to cast Melissa McCarthy in this role, but I mean, they didn't even cast >> fill in the blank of somebody who is not built like a supermodel, but like Anne Hathaway is this is the same [ __ ] with Princess Diaries. Like, oh, her eyebrows. Yeah. Ask Brook Shields. How about that one, you know? It's it the idea that we're supposed to think of her as like, you know, dumpy or a size six or whatever. Like the the the stuff they throw out in like pull the other one.

[00:05:33]It's [ __ ] Anne Hathaway. She's a glam Amazon.

[00:05:36]>> Yes. And she eats creambased soup at the condin cafeteria.

[00:05:40]>> Oh no.

[00:05:43]>> And she spilled it on the ceruan sweater. Uh these are all very good points that you make. And then at one point early on when she first gets the job, they're all sitting around a table having drinks and saying like, "Cheers to the hustle." essentially like jobs that pay the rent. And then they end up, you know, admonishing her for working too hard. Although >> true. She's giving them gifts.

[00:06:06]>> That's true. She brought them all kinds of things like a like a Marc Jacobs bag, >> you know. Uh yeah. So it's weird. And the whole Adrien Gier thing with him being like mythed that she didn't come to the birthday party. I mean, she showed up with a cupcake and a candle afterward. Like, she tried.

[00:06:21]>> Exactly. Dude, >> having said all that, this is a very entertaining movie. And I can see in retrospect why it was such a massive hit and not just with women and not just with a certain age of women, but like men loved this too. And it was a big mainstream entertaining hit, which is why we have a sequel. I guess it took 20 years because everyone's really busy.

[00:06:44]Merryill Street, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, Stanley Tui.

[00:06:48]>> They all had things on their plate.

[00:06:50]>> It took two decades for them to all align their schedules and all of that.

[00:06:53]Uh, but watching this again, it's just it's frothy and it's glossy and it moves well and it's edited so beautifully.

[00:07:01]That whole montage to Vogue, all the different outfits is edited so beautifully. like how she'll like cross behind a cab and all of a sudden her outfit's different or she'll go walk through the office and go past a pillar and now she's in a different pair of boots or whatever.

[00:07:15]>> Which is your favorite?

[00:07:17]>> Oh gosh, I do like the the Chanel one where they're like is that the Yeah, the new Chanel boots. Yeah, I do like where their heads turn.

[00:07:25]>> Um what do you like?

[00:07:26]>> I like the cow bag. The cow bag and the green coat.

[00:07:29]>> Oh yeah. All cute. She wears cute little hats. Um, my first thought though too was we've seen the inside of that apartment. Where is she putting all those clothes? Is she just pulling them off of the sample sale rack and or and like putting them back on dirty? Like is she changing clothes at work?

[00:07:47]>> I don't know. From a practical standpoint, it's kind of like who could afford the friend's apartment?

[00:07:52]>> Yeah. It's in a pocket dimension, you know, >> right? Where where is where is the closet that fits all of these like knee high boots and coats that she has to wear? Um, but yeah, it's edited so well and it's um it's really snappy and and Stanley Tucci is just like delightful with all of his little mean oneliners, but of course, you know, his heart's in the right place and he wants to help her. And he's also the voice of reason, you know, when she comes to him and and wants help from him, >> you know, he calls her out.

[00:08:20]>> He calls her out on how condescending and detached she has been.

[00:08:24]>> Yeah.

[00:08:24]>> You know, so if you're gonna make it work, you got to make it work. But it's just sort of funny how like in the superficiality of this realm, like all she has to do is start dressing better for Miranda to actually pay attention to her, take her seriously. Yeah.

[00:08:36]>> Eventually learn her name. Um yeah, the whole montage of of of Meil Street like dropping the coat in the bag like and all the the you know the demands and they're so ridiculous like get get the twins this, go pick up this, find me a table with that place I like. that I think establishes very efficiently what a monster she is and also how good Andy gets at this job.

[00:08:58]>> Yes.

[00:08:58]>> You know, >> I have Patrick.

[00:09:00]>> Um Yeah. No, this is a really entertaining movie and it's also and I think the reason we're getting the other reason we're getting a sequel, it is the kind of movie that loans itself to repeat viewings. Like this is the movie you throw on when you are at home on the couch with a cold, you know? like this is a movie that makes you feel good and is aspirational and like so glossy and ridiculous but at the same time has kind of a core of relatable humanity to it and so yeah you just want to get lost in that for a while and it is it's fun and it's fizzy so I get I get why people love this movie I get why it's maintained this following all this time and I get why you know people are excited about a sequel but you know just get getting into the nitty-gritty of it I'm like oh shut up trace See Tom's like, you know, you're working it. Oh, that's the other thing. She sees Simon, what's his face? Kiss her on Baker kiss her on the cheek and has a full boore flip out. Like she'd walked in on the two of them having sex in the store room. Like it is such a hallmark moment of like you thought you're supposed to be in love with the other guy. I'm like, lady, calm down. It's a peck on the cheek.

[00:10:10]>> I've known you for 16 years. This is not the Andy that I know. Yeah, it's stupid.

[00:10:14]And and Simon Baker is so obviously like, you know, going to be the wrong guy just by how cute he is and how charming he is. And also, why is he everywhere all the time? He's like at the exhibit. He's at the fashion show.

[00:10:29]He's at the cocktail party. Like, does he have no life? Is he stalking her?

[00:10:32]Like, why is he everywhere?

[00:10:33]>> He's the happening New York writer. He's in all the places and so is she, you know?

[00:10:37]>> I guess so. We got to talk about Meryill Streep and the fact that at first no one thought she was funny enough to play this role because she's like serious Merryill Streep. I was looking back death becomes her.

[00:10:49]>> Yeah. And that Yeah. The physicality required of that and delivery required of that. So I guess they had pondered Michelle Fefeifer, Glen Close, Katherine Zita Jones because they thought Mel Streep wasn't funny enough.

[00:11:00]>> But the thing with Merryill Streep's delivery is that it's not it's not the big wacky performance of Mama Mia.

[00:11:07]withering. Like I read that she drew from Clint Eastwood in, you know, in her delivery at first because everything is withering and a whisper and that's why it's like deadly cuz she's, you know, then that ceruan speech is a beautiful example of that how she just like lays her flat with just the the subtle voice.

[00:11:28]Totally. Totally. And I I do like how she's walking and talking through that and all of a sudden an outfit comes together that didn't exist before while she's like, you know, destroying her assistant. Um, so I also read that the Rachel McAdams was offered this role, the Andy role, multiple times and turned it down multiple times. And it's kind of you could you can imagine Rachel McAdams in it in that she has like the kind of likable underdog kind of girl next door that you want to root for. But I do think that Ed Hathaway pulls off as you put it the glam Amazon of Andy's evolution in a way that is a perfect fit for her and maybe would not be for Rachel McAdams.

[00:12:10]>> I bet you could you could put the right outfits and the right makeup on Rachel McAdams and get there with her. But yeah, I think Andy McDow, Andy McDow, Andy Andy, Anne Hathaway, thank you. Uh, pulls that off really well. And again, I I was thinking this while I was watching Mother Mary. You look at Anne Hathaway from certain angles and she looks like Liza and you look at her from some angles and she looks like Judy. It's astonishing. Yeah. Like why she's not doing a biopic of either of those women, I don't know. But we need to get on that, >> right? We know she can sing.

[00:12:42]>> I'm a little disappointed. I'm pretty disappointed in the sequel in that Anna Winour has decided to be in on the gag.

[00:12:49]>> Like when this novel came out, it was a blistering Romana Clay against her and about what a [ __ ] monster she was and how what a terrible boss she was >> and you know was all about Anna Winter.

[00:13:02]But because this movie has become so popular over the last two decades, Anna Winour has decided if you can't beat him, join them. So like she's on the cover of Vogue with Merryill. She was at the Oscars with Anne Hathaway. Like she's >> Yeah.

[00:13:15]>> She's like, "Haha, I have a good sense of humor about this." And it's like, "Well, sure, now you do. Now that Meyer Street has turned Miranda Priestley into an icon and not a Gorgon, you're going to sign up for that." But it's like it's I don't know. It's less fun.

[00:13:30]>> Yeah. It less the air out of it for sure. And also I read that, you know, when this came out or when this was being made that Annutor threatened that any actual designers who took part in it would be banned from Vogue forever.

[00:13:42]>> That's right. I forgot about that.

[00:13:43]>> It didn't happen apparently because Valentino's in it, you know. Yes.

[00:13:46]>> Clearly it didn't happen. And Patricia Field, who was the costume designer on the first film, um, you know, was clearly still a longtime fashion icon.

[00:13:53]Anna Winter couldn't destroy her. Um, she was nominated for an Oscar for costume design. uh lost to this lost to Maria Antuinette in costume design and >> fair.

[00:14:05]>> I mean that's also great but like the the clothes tell the story here. The clothes are the revelation of how the characters evolve and how they interact with each other. They're so necessary to the story and to these people. So, but whatever. I've always found it interesting that the costumemers guild when they give out their own awards have separate categories for like contemporary period and like sort of fantasy.

[00:14:30]>> That makes sense, >> you know. And so here you you you've got all these different kind of movies butdding up together. And I think more often than not they will go to period.

[00:14:38]You know, they'll think, oh, they had to, you know, because because the idea being, well, they had to make all those corsets as opposed to just, you know, grabbing a Chanel whatever off the rack.

[00:14:46]And it's like, >> yes, but I mean like they each have their own degree of difficulty and their own level of of aesthetic. And so, you know, I I I wish we could, you know, we could somehow broaden that category to understand there are different kinds of costumeuming and they have their own requirements, but you know, you're Yeah, they're both great in that.

[00:15:06]>> That's a good point. Also, um, weirdly, Merryill Streep was nominated for the Oscar in best actress for this.

[00:15:11]>> I think it's a supporting role and Anne Hathaway is your lead, but whatever. She lost to Helen Mirren in the Queen, >> right? Yes.

[00:15:19]>> Also a very dominating regal figure.

[00:15:22]>> Look, I will die on the hill that um uh Anthony Hopkins and Silence of the Lambs was supporting, but you know, totally.

[00:15:29]>> Yeah, you know, Nick Noly should have won lead that year for uh for Prince of Tides, but >> it's all weird. Anyway, I was really glad to have the opportunity to see this because it's just it zips by. It's glossy, entertaining, so funny, so sweet. Everyone's great in it. Uh, so I am really looking forward to the sequel which we are seeing tonight and that review will be out of the sequel on Wednesday morning when the embargo lifts. So keep an eye out for that. Do we give a number to the devil where Prada? No. It's just so good you guys, you know. Anyway, are you looking forward to the sequel? Let us know.