Ang Demonyang Fashionista

It is regrettable that Hollywood got to make The Devil Wears Prada first.

If it didn't, it would have been nice to see Vilma Santos play Miranda Priestley. Yes, Vilma Santos. Naturally, we're going to have to fashion (ahehe) a local name for her, and we will adapt it to local sensibilities. Or Star Cinema will.

Andie's adventures in the city can be translated into the travails of the working girls in Makati. I'd like to see Angel Locsin play her, and Luis Manzano her boyfriend. Then this would have been Vilma and Luis' first movie together, although they wouldn't share a scene.

Think about it: Vilma will boss Angel around, pushing her to her limits as only in-laws would. Then, when Angel goes home, she screams at Luis: "She's not happy when people around her are happy. She wants everybody to be miserable just like her." Short of yelling, Why is your mother such a monster?

Vilma is a good match to Meryl Streep, as Angel is to Anne Hathaway. Vilma is as towering a presence as Meryl, and Angel is as much a beginner as Anne is.

What is most thrilling is to see Vilma without the hysterics. It will be a challenge to the Star for All Seasons not to raise her voice for the entire movie. Please do not think that I am a Noranian (even though I admire Nora as well), especially since I like Vilma more than the Superstar. Can you see Vilma delivering these lines: "I told myself, Go ahead, hire the smart, fat girl. But you ended up disappointing me more than the other girls did." Is it not exciting to see Vilma for two hours up on the big screen without the wailing and the flailing of the arms?

It is regrettable that Hollywood got there first.