So- haven't seen Devil yet (the local theatre has once again raised its prices). I'm tempted to go, just for Streep, the fashion, and NYC/Paris! Though- Hathaway: Ella Enchanted was a complete hatchet job of the book (I liked the movie, wasn't crazy about the book, but still...) and Princess Diaries was also a hatchet job, just a bit more subtle (details altered for no darn reason), so what did they do to Devil wears Prada? Anyone? From what some have said, the movie has a happy/sappy ending, which is not how I remember the book...but am I misremembering?

Yes, I agree, different viewpoint, but one meant to keep her as she was, for their own reasons. I think for balance one could have supported and encouraged her in her new position.

But it was just a movie....

Ok, OK...let me chime in with a man's point of view of the flick.

I went yesterday with three of my women in tow (wife and two of her closest friends, one of whom is a shrink who frequently joins us...and we usually have the damndest post mortem movie analyses imaginable!)

All four of us enjoyed the entertaining movie immensely. I'm all for a well- fashioned story which I felt this was, if nothing else. One of the questions I posed at dinner following the movie, "Does one have to be an Amanda Priestly (Streep) to succeed in a high pressure business? Wife and other friend said definitely "yes", the shrink and I stood fast with "no"...I'm of the opinion that it certainly wouldn't have been a good story with a lesser character, more maleable and somewhat pleasant...but that there are countless human beings in pressurized positions that are successful without without being bosses from hell. We named such well known execs as poor little Billy Gates, two studio bosses here in Hollywoodland, the President of Southwest Airlines, and a few guys featured in Tom Peters classic books.

Tucci was great in his role, and I think Hathaway held her own very nicely with Streep. Other than that, you can take this to the bank...male movie goers, if they are open to a chick movie, should enjoy this story of the crazy fashion world.

The last look from Ms. Streep toward Hathaway was classic! Her subsequent smile said it all.

Stu T.

Interesting to read your thoughts on the movie, and on highpowered bosses in general Stu.

BTW fellows, one of my SIL's, sort of a real macho fellow, loved The Devil Wears Prada. He didn't want to go to it but did to be a good sport and think he was surprised how much he liked it.

My 13 year old daughter wants to see it. What do you think?

By all means take her to see it, there is nothing untoward in it that she shouldn't see.

I read the book, and though the film does make a few changes (most notably, it goes to great lengths to humanize Miranda), I really enjoyed it. In fact, when I came into work today, most of the women at work were buzzing about how much they loved it. The story is fun and the clothes--fantastic.

As for whether it's necessary for a woman to be like Miranda Priestly to get ahead. Honestly, I don't believe it is necessary to be abusive or demanding, but it can require an extraordinary time commitment which can have a high personal cost.

One of my favorite scenes was when Anne Hathaway went crying to Stanley Tucci and basically said grow up and get over it. With today's self esteem building at all costs, I could see this happening in the work place. It's a fast-paced, entry level, lousy job. The four friends at the beginning all toasted to having jobs that paid the rent. We all start there.

Ending? Well, not a happy, fairy tale ending, but she ended up in a place that many people work long and hard for a chance at getting where she ended up.

I haven't read the book, but the Streep character never did anything illegeal. Low level assistants do crummy fetch and gather jobs. I'm amazed the character didn't spend a good deal of time at the photocopier.

I'm sure we all know someone who headed out to the big city post graduation and didn't make it and returned home or moved somewhere else. Look over on the US forum and every now and again there will be a post from someone wanting out of the NYC rat race.

Yes, the scenery was pretty and so were the clothes. I want that green coat with faux (I hope) fur trim at the neck and wrists.

I really enjoyed the movie. I do disagree SeaUrchin that a different decision by Andi would have been a sign of personal growth. I think it would have been a sign of a bad internal moral compass. I just don't think that you have to be a backstabbing b**ch to be successful in a career. And any career that demanded that, wouldn't be for me.

But, as you say, it was just a movie....

Hi suki, I love to discuss a movie over wine and chocolate with my companions, right after we have seen it. And disagreeing makes it all the better, unless it gets too heated, which it has at times!

I think she didnt have to become a b--tch but a normal driven business woman who would give Miranda a run for her money.

I dont think it had a fairytale ending but she did end up in the job she wanted. OK, I will stop now, lol.

"....there are plenty of high pressure careers like hers, you have to be up to holding your own if you are serious about what you are doing."

What career--delivering the dry cleaning? She was a personal assistant, not a journalist. I didn't have a problem with the demanding boss figure until it crossed over the line to ridiculous--as in the demand to get a jet back to NYC from Miami in a hurricane. If a person fires an underling because of something not under the employee's control (weather), it doesn't signify tough standards that haven't been met. It signals petulance and anger. By all means, demand excellence in one's job performance. But the airport situation just didn't fall into that category.

Don't you wish she had said, "Sorry Miranda---you just weren't important enough to get on that last plane out." :)

I saw this with my daughter in college. She said later she hoped she never has a boss like that. I hope so, too---for the boss' sake!

Actually, the movie minimized the worst of Miranda's behaviors. In the book, she was far worse.

There really are some highly abusive bosses in this world. Often, they can get away with it because people so desperately want an entry into the industry. In the film, everyone kept saying that a million girls would kill for that job. It's true, they would.

However, I don't believe Andy took a step backward by quitting because the moral and personal compromises required weren't worth it for a job she didn't really want. She could have done the job and succeeded fabulously. But at the end of the day, would she really have been happy? Personally, I see nothing wrong in taking a demanding job and putting up with a lot. However, the end has to justify the means, and in Andy's case, it did not.

Good points, JZ, she didn't really want a career in that field.

Shall I read the book now?

What I found the most fascinating about the character Miranda was the double standard she demanded. How she was upset that an appointment wasn't confirmed. It was confirmed. She didn't want to hear about the stylist suffering a slipped a disk in the few hours between the confirmation and her appointment.

Miranda couldn't understand why it was so hard for her chauffeur to bring her car around in a timely fashion. She couldn't understand why it was so hard for so many people to do what she thought were simple things.

Yet when Andy first delivered "the book" and unwittingly violated protocol by slipping upstairs, what did she hear? Miranda's husband telling Miranda how he felt like a fool AGAIN because she had left him waiting at a restaurant until he gave up.

Miranda, honey, how hard is it to make a dinner reservation?

Then she lamented how difficult the divorce would be on the twins. Not so hard on the twins that she was willing to work at keeping her marriage together.

Sad, really. Or pathetic. I've had a few bosses that expected more of me than of themselves. "Lead by example" is what I think as I leave the office at 5:01pm. 10 minutes after they left.

Hi all,

My Lady Wife saw the movie yesterday.

She was very pleased to see that some of the scenes were shot in her favorite Paris restaurant.

http://www.vagenende.fr/us/p1.html

((I))

My husband thought I might have an "O" just seeing all of the clothes and shoes in the first ten minutes of the film. Oh Goooooooood, I love shoes!

I caught the cast of the movie on The View while channel surfing a couple days ago. Ann Hathaway said her character was modified from the book because she had such an air of entitlement in the book.

Meryl Streep (my 6 degrees of separation- I have taught two of her nephews in school and a couple other nephews go to school with my kids. Those Gummer boys look just like her husband.) acknowleged that the role model for the book character is Anna Wintour as the book was written by one of her "minions."

She went on to say that she didn't attempt to copy Wintour, that it is much more fun to make the character hers. One of the View hosts mentioned that she heard that the cast was told that none of them would ever be featured in Vogue and Meryl said, "I wouldn't be featured in Vogue anyway because I'm too fat."

Some of the clothes from the movie were auctioned for the charity "Dress for Success". eBay put 73 items (clothing, accessories and shoes) up and I think the bidding ends today (July 6th)

Just saw it this morning, and I hate to tell you this (but I will)... I will be in Paris for two weeks starting Sunday! I've never been there and watching the movie got me more excited. I hope to see every one of those great places I saw today in that film. The shoes and clothes were amazing as well! As for Streep, she was great. I think I'm one of about 35 people who recently saw her in A Prarie Home Companion and cannot believe the transformation. I guess that's what makes her one of our present day best actresses!

What do you mean "one of our present day best actresses"? She IS our present day best actress!

Bidding ends today on some of the items, notably the "fake" copy of the 7th Harry Potter book. I bid on it as a gift for our son who loves those books and enjoyed the movie, but when it topped $200 I figured he really wouldn't appreciate it that much! It's now at $370, which is a nice donation to the charity that will benefit.

<i>... the original &quot;Lois&quot;...who's getting on up there in years. Anyone spot her? </i>

The rich old woman that was dying and Lex Luther got her money-that was the original Lois Lane :)

Saw the movie last night (never read the book) and overall it was enjoyable... Streep and Tucci were great. I thought her character was a little cartoonishly one-dimensional, but the strength of her acting vastly improved the role...

The cinematography and use of real locations was terrific. I'll probably get flamed for saying this - but I found the unrealistic splicing of city scenes in both NYC and Paris to be very offputting. If they couldn't have continuity, then why show identifying markers so clearly?

For example: the scene where Andie is sprinting from subway (clearly marked 6-F-V-E at 51st and Lex) to office (6th Ave and 48th-ish), then back across town to Smith &amp; Wollensky's (a block or two south of the subway she'd exited). No way would she ever make a commute like that! (From her E. Village pad, she'd take the F directly to Rock Center.) Nor would she run across town to S&W; she'd take the V.

In Paris, Christian's (was that his name?) hotel was supposed to be in the 7th, but the view out the window of the distant Eiffel Tower made that location impossible.

It eventually got so distracting that I found myself looking for the visual mis-cues almost as much as the next great costume... Any other Fodorites notice the discrepencies?

I didn't notice because I am not that familiar with the places.

But I had this article brought to my attention and this explains exactly how I felt, Jane Gabahl says it so much better than I did.

http://tinyurl.com/hnsot

re: visual discrepancies. If I remember correctly, they show her walking from Christian's (?) hotel in the 7th to the Plaza Athenee...but crossing the Pont des Arts to do it. A bit out of the way, non? ;-)

Hi SeaUrchin, I read the article and it is somewhat persuasive. Still, I'm not sure that if I worked for a man like Miranda, I wouldn't think he were a total ass. That is, there are demanding bosses who make you better and then there are demanding bosses who are just total jerks. I guess I saw Miranda in the latter camp. Also, there was that comment at the end where she says something about everyone wanting to be her. Maybe in some circles that is true, but don't you think that in the end happiness is defined by the relationships in your life as well as your satisfaction with your career? I think the movie was definitely speaking to a whole generation of people who are saying they want a personal life as well as a career. Well, you've made me think about this movie more than I thought possible when I walked out of the theater!

HI, yes I agree with what you wrote too. I have been pushed by a demanding person like Miranda and I ended up appreciating it. She didn't attack her personally and really just tried to light a fire under her.

Yes, interesting movie when you think about it! Have a nice Sunday.

We saw the movie Friday night (when everyone else in the world was seeing Pirates, I gather.) I felt so woefully underdressed after that! (But this morning I'm wearing my Easy Spirit, non-spike heels!)

ttt for the Lounge

I thought STreep and Toucci were wonderful but did not like Hathaway. In the book she wanted to work for the New Yorker. Like Love Story a charming book, and later a film that you can put under your pillow and absorb it :)

Watched this over Christmas with our 24-year old, journalism school student daughter. I spent the first 20 years of my work life in women's magazine publishing. Needless to say we had much to talk about . Among other things:
-the portrayal of the business aspect of the magazine rang true, except for one thing...there is no way that much manufacturers' loot, expensive bags, belts and dresses, would be left in the permanent possession of the publication-they are &quot;loaned&quot; not given for photo shoots
-Meryl Streep's (Miranda Priestly) character was spot-on-I KNOW this person and she was the perfect amalgam of a number of Editors with whom I worked over the years...
-(finally, from my daughter) Anne Hathaway's (Andy's?) friends sucked-they (including her boyfriend) were unsupportive, willfully blind to the opportunities their freind was being given but had their hands out for goodies, were completely disinterested in her passion for the job and should have been ditched

-(finally, from me) that job at the &quot;New Yorker /VF&quot;lookalike will take just as much games-playing on Andy's part as the fashion magazine-these are businesses, not literary salons

And, BTW, SeaUrchin thanks for the link-very interesting article

Yes, I remember getting a little riled up at the time with the portrayels of the movie. I know people right now who work under people like Streep's character. In fact most of the people I know...

I think one of the best lines in the movei is Streep's at the end: &quot;Nonsense...everybody wants to be us.&quot;

No, Meryl..everbody wants to be YOU!

Of course! People are waiting in line to work for and become the Streep character, right before my eyes. If they can't hack it they drop out but the others hang on and they are the ones you read about or hear about later when they have &quot;made it&quot;.

Paris and New York being two of my most favourite cities in the world and of course fashion...........I loved the movie!! I did not look between the lines or think about it too much. It was a wonderful two hours and of course Meryl Streep was at her usual best!!!!

Loved the photography and the music. Streep is excellent, but when is she not?

I think a decision to get out of the race was perfectly fine. Why stick to something you are not passionate about? She was going to work at least as hard on the ohter job but at least it was something she felt strongly about.

As much as I love clothes and shoes, I could not bring myself to care passionately about them. At least not in the way Miranda and her minions do (and millions of people worldwide as well).

Author: Dukey
Date: 01/10/2007, 05:43 pm
I think one of the best lines in the movei is Streep's at the end: &quot;Nonsense...everybody wants to be us.&quot;

No, Meryl..everbody wants to be YOU!

Hey Dukey, my kids gave me the movie for Christmas and as I was watching bonus tracks on the DVD I came across a comment by the director that the line originally was &quot;...wants to be me.&quot; but Meryl changed it to &quot;...wants to be us.&quot;