Fashion, fury, and unbridled feminism come together in the unlikely figure of Miranda Priestly in the early 2000s flick, The Devil Wears Prada. Loosely (and by loosely, I actually mean it barely takes an effort to conceal its muse) modeled around Anna Wintour’s alleged tyrannical hold on American Vogue, the film takes a superficial look at the style industry, but more importantly, it critiques the adversity modern working women face.
Andy Sachs, who is brilliantly played by the beautiful Anne Hathaway, is a newcomer to the fashion world: she is an incompetent assistant who feels above the trivialities of all things clothing. Her boss Miranda almost instantaneously reads her to filth: Andy associates fashion with femininity, and thereby with weakness. But Miranda has leveraged the business through yes, slightly authoritarian ways, but with such a power that she singlehandedly controls every trend cycle through her magazine.
As Andy climbs the ranks of Miranda’s inner circle, she begins losing the trust of her boyfriend, family, and friends. They worry her new job has overtaken her morals, but my interpretation of the movie, as so often is the case, is that Miranda is not the villain. ANDY’S LOSER BOYFRIEND IS. Why is that every time a woman gains success, her counterpart inevitably grows jealous and distant? The inherent correlation between females flourishing and emasculation that society has created is saddening.
Andy and Miranda are direct parallels of each other, and represent the two poisons women must choose between when advancing through the workforce. Miranda divorces her husband due to his frustrations with her schedule, but Andy reconciles with Nate after feeling unable to deal with the brutalities of the magazine hierarchy. Media tells us that the modern woman can have it all. We are so lucky to live in such an era! So empowered! But are we really? At the end of the day, the question always comes back to family or fulfillment. Last year I came across an absolutely horrifying study in which psychologists found that despite claiming they wanted a strong, smart, successful woman, men nearly always refuse to date one. Miranda Priestly is an icon in her own right, because she refuses to let the connotations associated with fashion diminish her accomplishments, and rejects the notion that she must be gracious to nuclear family roles in order to achieve commercial recognition.
Another layer we must acknowledge to The Devil Wears Prada, is that it is primarily regarded as a chick-flick, despite its clear dramatic and biographical layers. Gee, I wonder if that’s because the subject is fashion?! Spoiler: it is. In almost every interest that is primarily female dominated, society dismisses it as trivial, and its followers as obsessed. Makeup, fashion, dance – these are all artistries in their purest forms. We should regard them as such. I’m always reminded of a quote from Anna Wintour when I feel dejected about my penchant for such things.
“If you can’t be better than your competition, just dress better.”
Petty at first glance, but this quote is a deeper take on confidence. The things that make you feel powerful are not to be hidden away in shame. Be smart AND hot AND crazy. Society will catch up in the meantime (I have to keep telling myself that to stay calm).
Shreya,
Another great post! The Devil Wears Prada is one of my mom’s favorite movies – I have a vivid memory of her sitting my sisters and I down to watch it when my dad was away on a business trip. Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway never miss – and neither does this movie! Your discussion of how men are intimidated by successful women is alarming but definitely true. I hope your though of society eventually catching up will come to fruition.
Sam
Shreya,
I enjoyed reading this recap on this movie. I had never previously heard of this movie, which is surprising because it sounds like it touches on many aspects of society. It is striking how success can change how society can look at a person, especially women. It is always surprising to me when celebrities say they wish they never got famous. But it is understandable when you look at how they are treated and the demand placed on them.
I have never actually watched this movie, though I know my two sisters enjoyed it. It is interesting to see how successful women are treated in society. They definitely have a level of bias placed against them and are held to a much higher standard than everyone else around them. I never heard of that psychological study about men refusing to date strong and successful women, but it makes sense. Most men want to be leaders in their homes while these women also want to be leaders. It is not a bad thing for women to be successful at all, but I can see why this study may be true. Keep up the good work!
I’ve never watched the movie, but I read the book when I was middle school and remember thinking “WOW!” Looking back, despite it being a comedy, it’s fascinating how it brings up so many issues that women face in society, especially men being intimidated by women climbing the ranks and making something out of herself. It’s interesting how you brought up the psychology study and I’ve also read somewhere that men actually prefer SAHM or women who have a lower title/salary than them. I will definitely watch the movie because anything with Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway will always be empowering!
While I have never watched the movie, I can tell from your vivid description that it is definitely worth watching. Its interesting how many layers the movie has despite its initial impression as a comedy. One part I found especially interesting about your post was the psychology study and how it was structured, not to mention its results. While I’m not one for movies, other than the occasional late night watch-alongs with my friends, I will definitely be searching for this movie to watch the next time I think to watch one.