"It took 20 years to make a sequel, but that time was clearly needed."
This was what Meryl Streep said during her visit to Korea earlier this month to promote "The Devil Wears Prada 2." The film, recently unveiled at a press screening, lived up to her words. By contrasting the media landscape of 2006, when smartphones did not exist, with that of 2026, when smartphones dominate everything, the film confidently proved that the 20-year wait was worthwhile.
The film opens with Andy (Anne Hathaway) and her entire team receiving layoff notices by text message on the very day they win an investigative journalism award. From the opening scene, the movie starkly reflects the brutal reality facing journalism today. The plot then unfolds urgently as Andy returns to work as the savior of the struggling magazine "Runway."
The most shocking change is the transformation of Miranda (Meryl Streep), the editor-in-chief of "Runway." Gone is the peak of power who used to throw her coat and bag at her assistant. Watching her hang up her own coat and struggle to read her smartphone without reading glasses, viewers glimpse the transience of power worn down by time. Twenty years have also dramatically changed the media environment. Luxury brands that once lined up to secure even a single article placement have now become the dominant party. Miranda has become a "real-world worker" who meets their demands to secure sponsorships, treating survival as her ultimate task. The reversal of power dynamics does not end there. Emily, who once struggled under Miranda, transforms into the most threatening figure, wielding power of her own.
Though "Miranda's era," which once seemed eternal, appears to be fading, the film never loses its hopeful gaze on the meaning of people and the value of work. Amid cold reality, the solidarity between Miranda and Andy, who recognize each other's abilities and existence, becomes the most powerful weapon for completing a seemingly impossible mission.
In particular, Miranda's candid confession that closes the film is a precious tribute and encouragement to workers of this era who find it hard even to get through the day. "I don't care what people say. I just love this work." It is a confession that what she tried to protect until the end was not power, but "the work" itself. The era of basking in dazzling spotlights is over, and surviving gracefully is becoming increasingly impossible. Yet enduring on the fierce battlefield with skill and passion, and protecting oneself and one's work — that, the film tells us after 20 years, is the elegance fit for a new era.
