She stole the show.
This is my spoiler ridden take on the movie. *spoiler alert*
The second time I watched The Dark Knight Rises, my heart leapt for joy in the final scene when Alfred looked over in the cafe in Florence. But my joy this time wasn't so much that Bruce was still alive, but that Selina Kyle had made it. She had escaped her life of crime, gotten her clean slate, and began a new life with Bruce.
She finally had her happily ever after, and she deserved it.
Anne Hathaway's Cat Woman was a most wonderful character she played. It really was incredible the way her character was so believable and her struggles so real.
The last time a woman caught our attention on screen, it was on Marvel's The Avengers, where Scarlett Johannson's Black Widow kicked some serious butt.
But while similar in many ways, the leading ladies helping to carry this summer's blockbusters actually have quite a few differences. Let's do a comparison.
Attire
Largely similar, both Catwoman and Black Widow wear a dark coloured tight suit that is fully functional in combat and in covert operations. They both wear a belt and have long sleeves.
Black Widow wears boots, especially since her fighting style is the lucha lubre, a high flying southern American wrestling technique. Catwoman wears high heels which would kill anyone doing such stunts, but she effectively uses them as weapons in a more grounded style of fighting.
The main difference between their outfits is that Catwoman wears a mask while Black Widow doesn't, and Black Widow wears her front zipper down while Catwoman wears her's all the way up.
Undercover Identity
When going undercover, whether to extract information or steal diamonds, the 2 dress up in ways outside of their combat attire.
Cat Woman also dressed as a maid to steal Bruce's pearls and get his prints.
As for Black Widow...
She also went undercover as Tony Stark's personal assistant in Iron Man 2...
...which wasn't all that different from acting like a prostitute.
Badges To Her Credit
Black Widow escaped from capture by kicking 4 guys butt while being tied to a chair, recruited the Hulk, was the only one who successfully interrogated Loki, escaped the Hulk, defeated Hawkeye, faught in the final battle against Loki's army, and closed the alien portal which effectively cut off the alien attack and saved the world.
Cat Woman stole from Bruce Wayne, kidnapped a senator, fought her way out of a gunfight unarmed and unharmed, led Batman to his fall, held her ground in prison, saved a boy from a thug, rode the Batpod, freed the trapped police officers, killed Bane and fought alongside Batman in the final battle, taking out 2 of the 3 armoured cars escorting the fusion bomb, buying enough time for Batman to save Gotham.
Character's Journey
Black Widow went from spy to soldier, from one working in the shadows to one standing her ground to hold a line against terrible odds. She did it when struck with the guilt of her past after talking to Loki.
Cat Woman went from a cat thief trying to get a clean slate to a girl desperately fighting to survive to finally a partner with Batman in his fight for good.
Analysis
All in all, I find Black Widow didn't grow much as a character in the films. Sure she did go from spy to soldier, but she was always in the front line of danger and it didn't seem like a big jump. And her interactions with Hawkeye point us to a backstory in Budapest and hint at a possible relationship between them, but don't take it further than that.
Meanwhile, Cat Woman struggled to survive in a city of rampant inequalities. Though she fought on the opposite side of the law for a long time, when given the opportunity and capacity to turn over a new leaf and fight for good, she made the difficult decision to stay and fight, risking life and limb in the process and kicked more butt than even Batman did. She won Batman's respect and Bruce Wayne's heart, and for all that she had to sacrifice to step up, she deserved no less of a man.
As a character, Black Widow was fleshed out as a sex symbol in Iron Man 2, and continued that way in the Avengers from the first scene that she appeared in. Her dressing was skimpy and her looks were sultry, all for the benefit of the audience. Cat Woman too was portrayed that way, but only for as long as she was doing a job. She reverted to ordinary girl next door once she was away from the fight, highlighting the fact that she was only acting as such to get her way with other characters, rather than for the sake of fan-service.
Final Conclusion
For being a realistic character that we can relate more to,
for being a woman fighting for survival against the odds,
for being a bad girl turned good in the most epic of journeys,
for being a lady who did the difficult but right thing,
Anne Hathaway's Cat Woman won my praise and my heart.
Black Widow was hot, but Cat woman... was sexy.
This is my spoiler ridden take on the movie. *spoiler alert*
The second time I watched The Dark Knight Rises, my heart leapt for joy in the final scene when Alfred looked over in the cafe in Florence. But my joy this time wasn't so much that Bruce was still alive, but that Selina Kyle had made it. She had escaped her life of crime, gotten her clean slate, and began a new life with Bruce.
She finally had her happily ever after, and she deserved it.
Anne Hathaway's Cat Woman was a most wonderful character she played. It really was incredible the way her character was so believable and her struggles so real.
The last time a woman caught our attention on screen, it was on Marvel's The Avengers, where Scarlett Johannson's Black Widow kicked some serious butt.
But while similar in many ways, the leading ladies helping to carry this summer's blockbusters actually have quite a few differences. Let's do a comparison.
Attire
Largely similar, both Catwoman and Black Widow wear a dark coloured tight suit that is fully functional in combat and in covert operations. They both wear a belt and have long sleeves.
Black Widow wears boots, especially since her fighting style is the lucha lubre, a high flying southern American wrestling technique. Catwoman wears high heels which would kill anyone doing such stunts, but she effectively uses them as weapons in a more grounded style of fighting.
The main difference between their outfits is that Catwoman wears a mask while Black Widow doesn't, and Black Widow wears her front zipper down while Catwoman wears her's all the way up.
Undercover Identity
When going undercover, whether to extract information or steal diamonds, the 2 dress up in ways outside of their combat attire.
Catwoman as the Climbing Socialite.
Cat Woman also dressed as a maid to steal Bruce's pearls and get his prints.
As for Black Widow...
Not sure what she was dressed as, but probably a hooker.
She also went undercover as Tony Stark's personal assistant in Iron Man 2...
...which wasn't all that different from acting like a prostitute.
Badges To Her Credit
Black Widow escaped from capture by kicking 4 guys butt while being tied to a chair, recruited the Hulk, was the only one who successfully interrogated Loki, escaped the Hulk, defeated Hawkeye, faught in the final battle against Loki's army, and closed the alien portal which effectively cut off the alien attack and saved the world.
Cat Woman stole from Bruce Wayne, kidnapped a senator, fought her way out of a gunfight unarmed and unharmed, led Batman to his fall, held her ground in prison, saved a boy from a thug, rode the Batpod, freed the trapped police officers, killed Bane and fought alongside Batman in the final battle, taking out 2 of the 3 armoured cars escorting the fusion bomb, buying enough time for Batman to save Gotham.
Character's Journey
Black Widow went from spy to soldier, from one working in the shadows to one standing her ground to hold a line against terrible odds. She did it when struck with the guilt of her past after talking to Loki.
Cat Woman went from a cat thief trying to get a clean slate to a girl desperately fighting to survive to finally a partner with Batman in his fight for good.
Analysis
All in all, I find Black Widow didn't grow much as a character in the films. Sure she did go from spy to soldier, but she was always in the front line of danger and it didn't seem like a big jump. And her interactions with Hawkeye point us to a backstory in Budapest and hint at a possible relationship between them, but don't take it further than that.
Meanwhile, Cat Woman struggled to survive in a city of rampant inequalities. Though she fought on the opposite side of the law for a long time, when given the opportunity and capacity to turn over a new leaf and fight for good, she made the difficult decision to stay and fight, risking life and limb in the process and kicked more butt than even Batman did. She won Batman's respect and Bruce Wayne's heart, and for all that she had to sacrifice to step up, she deserved no less of a man.
As a character, Black Widow was fleshed out as a sex symbol in Iron Man 2, and continued that way in the Avengers from the first scene that she appeared in. Her dressing was skimpy and her looks were sultry, all for the benefit of the audience. Cat Woman too was portrayed that way, but only for as long as she was doing a job. She reverted to ordinary girl next door once she was away from the fight, highlighting the fact that she was only acting as such to get her way with other characters, rather than for the sake of fan-service.
Final Conclusion
For being a realistic character that we can relate more to,
for being a woman fighting for survival against the odds,
for being a bad girl turned good in the most epic of journeys,
for being a lady who did the difficult but right thing,
Anne Hathaway's Cat Woman won my praise and my heart.
Black Widow was hot, but Cat woman... was sexy.
You do forget the Black Widow had some comedic value...
ReplyDeleteRemind me?
ReplyDeleteThe interrogation among other things, as well as in Iron man 2
Deletei still like Black Widow better because of how she used perceived weakness to her advantage
ReplyDeleteShe was the pioneer for the technique, which was cool, but i thought Cat Woman did it even better.
ReplyDeleteShe acted like a fearful domestic helper at first to get into the East wing.
But more than anything, she screamed her way out of a crime she was guilty of when the swat team came and the police actually helped her get out. That is taking advantage of perceived weakness.
to whoever wrote this,your an idiot. Black widow over Catwoman any day, obviously youve never picked up a comic book before because if u had you would realize that Black Widow is like that in the comic books they simply portrayed her correctly. No one tried to make her like a prostitute thats just how she is in the comic books.
ReplyDeleteWell you are right - i've never got my hands on a black widow comic before. This post was more a comparison on their movie version alone. Nonetheless, I'll go pick up a copy of the Black Widow comics at the library... after i finish with the CatWoman ones I have on loan at the moment.
ReplyDelete