The Devil Wears Prada 2

Screened at Festival Theaters, Palm Springs, California

I think it's safe to say that Meryl Streep can be credited for the majority of the success seen in the original The Devil Wears Prada, which pretty much blew my mind when I realized that film is now 20 years old. There is no mercy given when it comes to aging, except unless of course you're talking Meryl Streep who is, yet again, magnificent in this. Which makes it strange to then say I didn't enjoy her as much here, but only because I feel the writing needed to be stronger. Here, they've accidentally put the character of Miranda Priestly into a "more is less" situation, in that we seem to get more Miranda on screen, but less of the Miranda in spirit that we want and are familiar with. Perhaps it's built into her character that she has aged and softened a bit as the years passed - fair enough. And rest assured, she is without question the same character and you will mostly get the fix you're likely looking forward to. But I'd suggest tempering your expectations as another show-stopping "cerulean" scene is not to be had here. Regardlesss, it's fantastic to be in this world again, all the actors step right back into their roles (it also looks like they've barely aged in two decades) and it almost feels in many ways like no time has passed.

All the elements are there again in The Devil Wears Prada 2 (why not The Devil Still Wears Prada?). It has a good soundtrack, we head back to Europe again, Miranda and Andy (Anne Hathaway) have a revealing heart-to-heart of sorts in the back of her limo towards the film's conclusion, there's a (much improved) love interest for Andy, plenty of cameos from both the fashion and journalistic worlds, and it still has the energy the first one delivered, albeit it a bit more mellow and toned down. The storyline works well enough for a film like this, which is meant to be cheesy, glossy fun, and that's what we get, right on par with the original.

Overall, it is a step down, but not in a disappointing way. It's instead in the way we should all expect, which is it delivers as much as the original as possible, but do expect the magic and spark which made the first so fantastic to be mostly missing. That's how I felt throughout, but I have to say, again, the magic here really is with Meryl Streep. Even with this script that tones down her ruthlessness (which is so incredibly satisfying to watch; who WOULDN'T want to be put in their place by this character??), Meryl makes it work. So much so, that though I didn't feel the need to pump my fists or laugh or jump for joy like I did during the original, by the end she brought it home once again. To the point that even with this Miranda, I, and likely you, will find your way to caring for her. There's so many ways to relate to her, even in her coldness; a humanity that is so relatable that its's giving me chills right now as I write this. It's hard to explain, but those glimpses are there again. What makes the hard exterior work, is the soft interior that is confirmed once again to be there, bringing a different kind of viewing satisfaction for round two.

So, I recommend this highly to anyone who loved the original. If you didn't, you can move on. But if you did, I would say this is normally a 3.5 stars. However, in a film about fashion, I REALLY appreciated Andy wearing a Björk t-shirt in one scene - the Post album cover - so that brings this up to a 4-star level.

That's all.