MICHEL MARTIN, BYLINE: "The Devil Wears Prada 2" arrives in theaters, fashionably late, on Friday. It's been 20 years since the original movie came out. It's all about the world of high fashion, the dresses, the shoes, the belts - and the catfights. Meryl Streep played Miranda Priestly, the apex diva editor of Runway magazine. Anne Hathaway played her fashion-agnostic assistant.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA")
MERYL STREEP: (As Miranda Priestly) You have no style or sense of fashion.
ANNE HATHAWAY: (As Andy Sachs) Well, I think that depends on what's your...
STREEP: (As Miranda Priestly) No, no. That wasn't a question.
MARTIN: The movie became a cultural touchstone, even for people who do not care about the fashion industry. Here to tell us why is Robin Givhan, who won a Pulitzer Prize for writing about fashion and culture at The Washington Post. She now contributes to The New York Times as a cultural critic. Robin, good morning. Thanks for joining us.
ROBIN GIVHAN: Thank you for having me.
MARTIN: Why do you think so many people latched onto this movie and the characters?
GIVHAN: You know, it's Meryl Streep being fabulously Meryl Streep. And it's a subject matter that is visual candy, all the clothes and the backdrops. And I think it also gives people a little bit of a window into a world that, even if they are, you know, put off by it, are still somewhat curious about it.
MARTIN: So as a person who's seen the industry up close for many years now, what did the movie get right and what did the movie get wrong about the industry?
GIVHAN: I mean, in many ways, it got a lot right in very exaggerated form. You know, the scene that so many people point to is the famous cerulean blue scene. It really kind of explains to people, this is the road that fashion takes, from a designer's showroom through a fashion magazine onto, you know, a mass market.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA")
STREEP: (As Miranda Priestly) I see. You think this has nothing to do with you. What you don't know is that that sweater is not just blue. It's not turquoise. It's not lapis. It's actually cerulean. And you're also blithely unaware of the fact that in 2002, Oscar de la Renta did a collection of cerulean gowns, and then I think it was Yves Saint Laurent, wasn't it, who showed cerulean military jackets? That blue represents millions of dollars and countless jobs. And it's sort of comical how you think that you've made a choice that exempts you from the fashion industry when, in fact, you're wearing a sweater that was selected for you by the people in this room.
GIVHAN: It is one of my favorite films about fashion. It shows both the craziness of the industry, but it also really encapsulates why people bother to do it, why it's fun, why it attracts so many people. There's a moment when Stanley Tucci's character says, you fail to see that this magazine is not just pictures of outlandish clothing.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA")
STANLEY TUCCI: (As Nigel Kipling) This is not just a magazine. This is a shining beacon of hope for - oh, I don't know - let's say a young boy growing up in Rhode Island with six brothers pretending to go to soccer practice when he was really going to sewing class and reading Runway under the covers at night with a flashlight. You have no idea how many legends have walked these halls. And what's worse, you don't care.
MARTIN: So let's talk about the sequel. Give us the basic storyline.
GIVHAN: Well, I mean, the storyline is essentially that, you know, we now are in a different universe with the fashion magazines. There have been tremendous budget cuts and there have been layoffs. And there's also been the challenge of, you know, eyes shifting online as opposed to, you know, wanting things in print.
MARTIN: As I understand it, Miranda is forced to seek advertising dollars from another former assistant, Emily Blunt, who's now a high-powered, luxury brand executive, and Andy Sachs, Anne Hathaway's character, I guess, she's there to - what? - sort of help mediate this.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA 2")
HATHAWAY: (As Andy Sachs) I am the new features editor at Runway.
EMILY BLUNT: (As Emily Charlton) You know, what's funny is you've changed. You have. You're much more confident. Kept those eyebrows, though, didn't you?
MARTIN: The other thing about it, though, is that it is a meditation about women and power and how women can express power, how they use that power, and if it differs or doesn't from the way men use power.
GIVHAN: Well, I think that's one of the sort of wonderful things about Meryl Streep's portrayal. Meryl Streep never raises her voice as the boss. She never yells. In fact, the angrier, the more intimidating (laughter) she gets, the lower her tone. And it is daunting. I mean, you see this very controlled person and, you know, I think that is instructive in people sort of understanding the way that women can and do wield power.
MARTIN: Honestly, I think the way you see that movie depends on - you know how - you know that expression, where you stand depends on where you sit? Because if you're kind of a junior on that totem pole, you're thinking, yeah, that could be me. But what if you're a person who's actually risen on that totem pole and you feel really misunderstood? You feel like people don't know what you've - what you've had to do to get there.
GIVHAN: You know, I feel like the response to it has shifted over the years. Like, one of the prime ones was Anne Hathaway's character's boyfriend in the original film. And at the time, he was sort of seen as this grounding force and reminding her of who she was before she sort of got, you know, sort of swept up in this fashion world. And I think now you look back and you sort of see him as this kind of toxic personality.
MARTIN: Yeah. Like a scolded kind of a jerk.
GIVHAN: Right. Who, you know, sort of failed to be supportive of her.
MARTIN: Well, before we let you go, you going to tell us whether you like the movie or not?
GIVHAN: (Laughter) You know, here's the thing. I go into it feeling, like, Meryl Streep, Stanley Tucci - you're basically going have to just, like, light the theater on fire for me not to enjoy it.
(LAUGHTER)
MARTIN: Robin Givhan, thank you so much for talking with us.
GIVHAN: Pleasure.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "VOGUE")
MADONNA: (Singing) Let your body move to the music. Ooh, you've got to just let your body go with the flow. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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