A surprisingly engaging sequel that takes on current issues in the high-pressure world of fashion journalism, The Devil Wears Prada 2 is a stylish follow-up with sharp performances and catty exchanges that captures the same appeal as the original.
There tends to be a cardinal rule when it comes to movies – if a sequel is produced, it’s usually worse than the original. You can count on it. There are occasions where additional films in a series are just as good or occasionally better (Grease 2 is way better than the original Grease. This is a hill I will die on.), but something like the new Jumanji or Frozen movies are hard to come by. You expect it to be more like Mean Girls 2. (Why did they make that movie??)
The Devil Wears Prada 2 picks up twenty years after the first movie left off. Andy is now an award-winning journalist, but the world has changed. Print magazines are dying, social media is everything, and online stats are the goal. When Andy is invited to work at Runway to try to help save the company, she is reunited with her old boss, Miranda Priestly, and Miranda’s right-hand man, Nigel. Looking for advertisers to keep the magazine afloat, Andy also runs into former coworker Emily, who works for Dior.
I have to tell you, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this movie. I did not expect much going in, but it is right on par with the original, maintaining the same tone, cattiness, and lean into high fashion.
My impression upon reuniting with each of the stars of the first movie was in two parts. First, “Aw, it’s lovely to be with them again. They’re exactly the same as they always were.” And second, “Do they not age? It’s been twenty years! Wow, good job!” This fits the narrative for every one of the actors, but Kenneth Branagh, I want to drink whatever it is you’re drinking.
The film stars Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, and Stanley Tucci, reprising the roles they originated in the 2006 film. Each of them is a powerhouse on screen, and it’s notable that, when they are together, the working dynamic is incredibly generous. Nobody overtakes the other’s performance. It is like a volleyball going back and forth over the net. I hope they had as good a time filming as it turned out on screen.
I also really enjoyed the realities explored in The Devil Wears Prada 2. To make another movie about a terrifying boss in a working fashion house would be disingenuous. But to make a movie about the changing times, the struggles hitting journalism and the way information is served to the public, the reduction in funding by advertisers, and the one person who, no matter the circumstances, can knock you down a peg in 10 seconds? Now, that is an interesting film.
With lots of personality and polish, The Devil Wears Prada 2 recaptures the charisma of the first. It is effortlessly strong and sharply written, such that you’ll both laugh out loud and feel the kick in your gut. We’ve all had that person who could intimidate us with their pinky finger, and you see it here in spades. The difference, though, is that you might handle it slightly differently twenty years after it first happened. Or you might not.
There tends to be a cardinal rule when it comes to movies – if a sequel is produced, it’s usually worse than the original. You can count on it. There are occasions where additional films in a series are just as good or occasionally better (Grease 2 is way better than the original Grease. This is a hill I will die on.), but something like the new Jumanji or Frozen movies are hard to come by. You expect it to be more like Mean Girls 2. (Why did they make that movie??)
