Released on May 1, “The Devil Wears Prada 2” was a nostalgic throwback to “The Devil Wears Prada” (2006). It wasn’t as good as the first movie, but it was meant more as a comfort film to those who loved the first movie and wanted a new story to watch over and over. The film reveals the character development made between the first movie and the second, while also showing the intense social changes that have happened between 2006 and now. Do these social changes take away from the movie’s characters, or do they add to their development?
The Devil Wears Prada 2 didn’t stand out to me as a film with a strong plot or interesting plot twists. It was easy to see how things would play out, but it wasn’t a bad movie. For the people who love the first movie and have watched it many times, the second movie is a new film to dissect and watch again and again. There were many returning characters, such as Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep), Andrea “Andy” Sachs (Anne Hathaway), Emily Charlton (Emily Blunt) and Nigel Kipling (Stanley Tucci).
Coming to see this movie, I was expecting to see the characters I know and love, but instead I was met with a blander version of them. Miranda’s character was watered down by the new culture of media, excluding her harsh, direct personality and opinions because of “cancel culture.” I think this took away from one of the most enticing parts of her character. Because of “HR,” Miranda could no longer throw her coat and bag on the desk of her assistant, talk about the bodies of models and so on.
Despite some of the restrictions on the new culture of society making the characters more bland, it also added some interesting and funny details. All of the strong leading characters were women who had supportive men at home, which is a less common thing to see in movies. It was also just amusing to see Miranda struggle with the new restrictions she had placed on herself.
When comparing the first and second movies, it is very easy to see the similarities. Andy is trying to win over Miranda with a big stunt, the first movie being retrieving the transcript of an unpublished Harry Potter book, and the second movie being an interview with Sasha Barnes, someone Miranda had not previously been able to contact successfully. Andy is saving the company with her new ideas, but also making big mistakes that could destroy them.
I would recommend this movie to anyone who enjoyed the first movie and wants a sequel. It isn’t an action movie or anything exciting, but it satisfies the need for more about these fan-favorite characters.
