The Devil Wears Prada 2

Movie Rating: 3 / 5 - Another revival of a franchise.

A continuation of The Devil Wears Prada film from 2006. We are reunited with Andy Sachs, a once-aspiring journalist turned published writer. However, Andy remains a plucky, quirky woman. She receives a call from Irv Kipling, the CEO of the magazine Runway, who asks her to come back to the company and become the features editor. Reunited with the notoriously difficult Miranda Preisly, beloved Nigel, and a new sweep of characters that are once again perfectly trained to accomodate the Editor-in-Chief’s every whim.

All is not well, however, in Runway magazine. As they try to navigate the modern day of digital media. As the magazine world slowly becomes a bigone titan of influence. With Andy’s arrival at Runway, she hopes to reinvigorate the magazine with relevance both in print and online, with more material of substance. Throughout her efforts, it seems Andy becomes a favorite of Miranda after scoring a very impossible interview. After that, Miranda seems to actually treat Andy kindly. Tragedy strikes when Irv, the CEO, dies suddenly at his birthday party. Halting Miranda’s pending job promotion and leaving the magazine in the hands of Irv’s son. A techy, sportswear, cold brew, 40-something who plans to rehaul the entire magazine and flush it out. Andy, the determined go-getter, takes it upon herself to try to stop the impending flush.

What continues to baffle me right off the bat is how Andy, despite her years of knowledge, experience, and success, still cowers before everyone. I can understand it’s a character choice, but Andy is a grown woman now. In the film, they mention how Andy seems more confident; however, they do nothing to showcase this apparent newfound power. Andy is still squeamish, quick to please others, and doesn’t have an ounce of foresight later in the film. She plays right into the hands of Emily, who had ulterior motives in “saving” Runway magazine.

However, Andy still has a lot of heart and charm. Which is why audiences loved her in the first film. But in a world of reprisals and sequels, I don’t think I can be excited about another one. Where the film industry thrives on nostalgia now more than ever over new content, unheard of actors, and fun spins on previous concepts. I adore the concept of the fashion industries transition to the digital age, and how that continues to affect magazine brands, fashion brands, and even those in the industry itself. However, the movie simply uses this conversation to frame the beloved actors: Anne Hathaway, Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, and Stanley Tucci, in a star studded designer moshpit.

My apologies; let me get back on track with the review. I’ll step down from my soapbox about the film industries obsession with sequels, prequels, and bleak-quils.

This movie is arguably a good chick-flick movie. Good for a night on the couch with wine, a bath and body candle lit, and your pajammas on. I enjoyed the moment when Andy finally nudges to Miranda that she has discredited and taken Nigel for granted. Who has always wanted to become someone of higher importance and position, but always followed after Miranda, who seemed to stop each opportunity for this growth over the 20 years. Finally, Miranda sees her mistake in this and asks Nigel to speak on behalf of Runway in her place. A final bid to preserve Runway as it is. I think within the whole film, that moment is what brought it back to earth and gave it some heart. Finally writing a wrong that was left uncorrected in the original 2006 film.

While I’ll preserve the ending for your enjoyment. But it’s nice to know that in the end. Andy and Miranda’s newfound partnership seem to restore Runway in a fun twist of fate. Alongside that, we see Miranda’s reveal of knowing Andy’s ongoing secret that begins at the end of the film. Agreeing to do good work together with their new circumstances.

I give this film a 3 out of 5. Unfortunately, I truly am biased against sequels. Especially when their revival is decades later and appears to be merely for the pomp and specical of rehashing a film for the sake of money. However, in measurments of what makes a decent film, I enjoyed this one. It’s a fun movie to watch, and makes for a nice night in if you desire a low stakes film that has as bit of fashion, nostalgia (of course), and some feel good moments.