Catwoman
compiled by Jeffrey Overstreet | posted 7/23/2004
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Reviewing Catwoman, a film critic can take the easy road: find the most readily available derogatory metaphor relating to cats.
"It's the pick of the litter box," for starters. Or, "This kitty's just roadkill that's been left to bake in the sun too long." Too grisly? How about, "The summer's biggest hairball!" No, that was probably used in a review of Garfield—still, Garfield looks good compared to Catwoman. Critics will have a lot of fun with titles too. Will anyone try "I Tawt I Taw a Tawdry Tat"? Or, perhaps, "Wuss in Boots"?
Or, you could get personal: You could question why an Oscar-winning actress like Halle Berry would choose for her next big performance a role that reinforces damaging female stereotypes for sex-obsessed male viewers. Or you could just ask her why she'd take part in a movie with such a a worthless script.
The answer to those two questions is pretty obvious: more fame and more money. In The New York Times this week, Berry expressed her drive to "survive" in the business. "I've survived ups and downs. If this doesn't work, you keep trying, keep throwing it up against the wall. As an actor, it's what we do." Yep. "Throwing it up" just about says it all.
Someone should tell Berry about those actors who have more dignity and who aim for something higher than mere "survival," who show discernment in the parts they choose. Not every actress is so willing to compromise. Berry may be the first African-American actress to win an Oscar, but she's got a fair distance to climb to match the integrity and skill manifested by some of her peers. Alfre Woodard (Passion Fish, Grand Canyon) and Angela Bassett (What's Love Got to Do With It?, Sunshine State) have shown they can command the screen with performances rather than various states of undress.
But enough about Berry—it is the critic's primary task to assess the film, not the career of its star. And there's not much to say about Catwoman. The summer that gave us what is arguably the best comic book movie of all time—Spider-Man 2—has now choked up what is arguably the worst.
A quick history: On the Batman TV show of the 1960s, Eartha Kitt made Catwoman and her secret identity—Selina Kyle—famous. In 1992's Batman Returns, Michelle Pfeiffer turned in an Oscar-worthy performance for director Tim Burton. Pfeiffer transformed Kyle into a wacky, semi-psychotic avenger for all exploited secretaries. There, she fought the bad guys in a man's world, but she also challenged damsels in distress to stick up for themselves. Her undisciplined tactics clearly identified her as a villain, but Burton was smart enough to depict her as depressed, dissatisfied, and redeemable. There was a broken heart driving Catwoman's manic antics. She was at least as interesting as Batman, if not more.
Thus, the Catwoman movie project has been a promising possibility, generating hopeful rumors for years. At first, fans hoped for Pfeiffer's return. For a while, Ashley Judd looked likely to wield Catwoman's whip.
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