‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’ an Astute Return to the Runway

⭐⭐⭐(3.5 stars)

When news of a Devil Wears Prada sequel broke, fans were rightly suspicios about what a follow-up to one of the most-loved movies of the early noughties would entail. Thankfully, their fears are allayed by what proves to be a fun and thoughtful addition to the franchise.

Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway) is all grown up now, a career journalist with “serious” credits to her name alongside earlier fashion fodder. When Runway’s Editor-in-Chief Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep) becomes the subject of an investigation into the use of sweat shops in high fashion, Andy is brought in to restore credibility to the brand and reunites with Emily (Emily Blunt) and Nigel (Stanley Tucci) to help the magazine navigate a new era of publishing.

For a movie whose main attraction is its outfits, The Devil Wears Prada 2 is exceptionally astute in its observations about the role of journalism in the digital-first world its characters occupy 20 years on, and the dangers of stepping into the future without critical reflection.

Andy repeatedly makes the point that financially gutting traditional media comes with consequences, but that storytellers have to find ways to tell audiences what they need to know in a manner they’ll want to hear. There’s no point idealistically preserving an institution if no one engages with it.

It’s a reality Miranda is coming to terms with, almost as much as the adjustment to a working environment that requires her to hang her own coat and know the names of her staff. She can’t treat her assistants with the same disdain Andy was subject to, and while the evolution does soften her character slightly it’s not to the point of losing the tone loved in the first film.

Where the choice to see Miranda grow falls short though, is in how she addresses body positivity.

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In one editorial meeting, Runway’s staff are planning an upcoming catwalk shoot and – with the aid of her assistant Amari (Simone Ashley) – Miranda all but chokes on her words as she attempts to describe some of the models as advocates for “body positivity” without using offensive descriptors.

It’s a nod to the fact Runway has embraced the modern movement; however, we never see any of these models on screen. Ever. In fact, everyone we do see seems especially slim and reflective of the historical “size 0” culture of the industry. Miranda’s second assistant Charlie (Caleb Hearon) could be the only “real body” around, but he’s kept behind a desk as a throwback to Andy’s original role.

Aside from that oversight, The Devil Wears Prada 2 does well to mature with its audience without creeping into any agenda-driven territory and remains fun and thoroughly over-the-top in representing the fickleness of the fashion world it occupies.

If you’re a fan of the first, you can safely return to Runway unharmed.

That’s all.

The Devil Wears Prada 2 is in cinemas now, rated M.

Feature image: Supplied