You know someone like Andy Sachs. She’s a recent college grad who would do almost anything for a job. She’s also the protagonist in “The Devil Wears Prada,” so the whole appeal of seeing the film adaptation of author Lauren Weisberger’s 2003 novel is to watch a frumpy former Daily editor in chief, played by Anne Hathaway, stumble and trip over her stilettos while trying to please her hellish boss, Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep).
Andy fetches coffee and runs errands not only for Miranda but for her first assistant, Emily (Emily Blunt). Throughout the movie, Emily and Miranda order Andy to do the most menial tasks in the most patronizing tone. If Andy can fetch steaming hot Starbucks, find the latest Harry Potter manuscript and locate 15 perfect Calvin Klein skirts (among other tasks) for a year, Andy can have any magazine job she wants.
While Andy suffers, Emily and her “clacker” friends – fashion-forward magazine staffers who “clack” as they walk through the offices of Runway – dismiss her shapeless sweaters and endearing naivete.
Despite the less-than-office-friendly interactions Andy has with her co-workers, every once in a while, Miranda will let a gaze – rather than her usual death stare – linger on Andy. Or an art director (Stanley Tucci) will help Andy become chic. Or a freelancer (Simon Baker) will try to win Andy both a writing job and her affections.
Her family and friends worry about her career path and sanity, but they certainly don’t mind the swag she brings home. That is, until Andy becomes so preoccupied with pleasing Miranda and living the glamorous life that her best friend calls her out on her superficial changes and her boyfriend (Adrian Grenier) breaks up with her.
Eventually, working at Runway consumes Andy’s entire life, and she experiences the ugliness that can come with working at a prominent fashion magazine: enemies airkiss each other then insult them out of ear shot, egos interact and explode and coworkers backstab each other for a promotion. Despite the glamour of the job, Andy must decide if working through all the egos and drama is worth the prestige of having Runway magazine on her resum