Details of Your Incompetence
Meryl Streep’s portrayal of a demanding and powerful fashion magazine editor in The Devil Wears Prada was supposedly a fictional depiction of Vogue editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour. The New York Times bestseller on which the movie is based is written by Lauren Weisberger, once an assistant to Wintour. Weisberger said of the novel:
“It wasn’t a one-to-one portrayal. But of course, my time at Vogue informed the book, there’s no denying that.”
The stick-thin, steak-eating Streep, aka Nuclear Wintour, was renowned for her hard-hitting one-liners in the dramedy. One such line that may go down in the annals of movie-making history is:
“Details of your incompetence do not interest me.”
But is The Devil Wears Prada an accurate rending of Wintour? According to American fashion journalist, Andre-Leon Talley, Weisberger paints a very real picture of the fashion icon. Talley worked closely with Wintour for many years as editor-at-large of Vogue magazine. In his recently published memoir, The Chiffon Trenches, he claims that Wintour is both “ruthless” and “incapable of human kindness.” Rarely do powerful individuals such as Talley leverage criticism like this.
Dress the Part
Survival in the world of fashion is underpinned by clever branding and an impeccable dress sense. For instance, Karl Lagerfeld’s signature style was wearing gloves, sunglasses, and high-necked white shirts while he was working at Chanel and Fendi. Sir David Tang likened Lagerfeld’s dress sense to that of Dracula. Tom Ford’s personal presentation is predictable – a dark suit with a white shirt and tie. The seemingly boring attire worn by these two acclaimed fashion designers poses some irony. After all, they have both designed unique, stunning, and sought-after garments for many years.
On the other hand, the word ‘dull’ and Wintour’s sartorial sense do not mix. She is always perfectly polished and professional and has cultivated an instantly recognizable everyday look. Who in the fashion world isn’t familiar with her statement sunglasses, stylish necklaces, and boldly printed dresses? Wintour says of dressing the part:
“If you can’t be better than your competition, just dress better.”
Zoom in on Wintour
So, you have Wintour the cutthroat business executive and Wintour the chic fashion icon. But does the woman ever let her guard down? Recently, The Guardian examined how people were showing themselves on Zoom amidst the COVID-19 lockdown. Top marks were awarded to Marc Jacobs and Meryl Streep while Charlie Puth’s unmade bed in his Zoom backdrop garnered criticism. Wintour didn’t score well either. Jess Cartner-Morley, a journalist at The Guardian wrote:
“But hosting Vogue Conversations videos, or on Naomi Campbell’s YouTube channel, she is in sunglasses framed against a window with drawn curtains. Closed curtains and sunglasses in the middle of the day make for a shifty, motel-room-scene-in-a-heist-movie look, even in the Hamptons. It’s all wrong. What I want from Anna is a crystal vase of peonies, a Smythson notebook with a silk ribbon and a Diptyque candle”.
Under the weight of the current pandemic, many may find it challenging to have the latest hairdo and be dressed to kill. But surely a personal backdrop for an audience is equally as important as clothing? Is Wintour losing some of her touch and sparkle whilst self-isolating at home? What has sparked this change in her? Admittedly, it’s difficult to understand somebody unless you’ve walked a thousand steps in their shoes. Does Wintour need some TLC or is she simply missing the dynamics of the office? In her own words:
“Some people have the Bible. I have Vogue.”
