SuperHeroBooks - Catwoman (Widescreen Edition)
|
List Price: $12.98
Our Price: $1.94
Your Save: $ 11.04 ( 85% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
Starring: Halle Berry, Benjamin Bratt, Sharon Stone, Lambert Wilson, Frances Conroy
Directed By: Pitof
|
Average Customer Rating:  
|
|
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Binding: DVD
Brand: Warner Brothers
EAN: 9781419806988
Format: AC-3
ISBN: 141980698X
Label: Warner Home Video
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
Number Of Items: 2
Publisher: Warner Home Video
Region Code: 1
Release Date: 2005-01-18
Running Time: 104
Studio: Warner Home Video
Theatrical Release Date: 2004-07-23
|
|
|
|
|
|
Spotlight customer reviews:
|
Customer Rating:
Summary: Cats come when they feel like it. Not when they're told
Comment: ------------------------------------
Catwoman: Time to accessorize!
=======================================================
Catwoman was a box office bomb, and it also won a Razzie award for Halle Berry, which she accepted in person. The 'award' was for worst couple, shared with either of her costars--Sharon Stone or Benjamin Bratt. As much as I'd like to see Stone and Berry coupling, their hook up was more along the lines of hero and villain. Darn. Bratt, on the other hand, plays a cop who is fascinated by both Patience Philips AND Catwoman. Obviously he was cast more for his looks than his acting or ability to convincingly portray a cop. As Lance, Patience's colleague at the Beauty Products company proclaims when he pays Patience a visit:
-----------------------
Lance: Hey! Man sandwich! Twelve o'clock!
====================================
Benjamin has played similar roles in 'Miss Congeniality' with Sandra Bullock--where they were both cops and with Madonna as a yoga instructor in 'The Next Best Thing.' Bratt even won another Razzie for 'The Next Best Thing'--also for worst couple. In his defense I'd have to say that matching him with the Halle cat is not this movie's biggest problem. In fact, I have no problem whatsoever with the Bratt/Berry match.
The problem with this movie is the writing. A real stupid script that makes no sense, and fails to create a compelling vision that might have made the audience forgive its lack of sense. Catwoman might have worked as a fable, with the mysterious character of Ophelia and her cats, especially Midnight, the Egyptian Mau, as a kind of witch's familiar. 'Edward Scissorhands' certainly doesn't make sense, but in the world that Tim Burton creates, it works as a fable, and we've never metaphor we didn't like. For another instance, in Jean Cocteau's Beauty and the Beast when the Beast kills a bird and eats it smoke comes out of the poor bird. This makes no literal sense, but in the poetic, dream like fable, it makes perfect sense. 'Catwoman' was a character out of the Batman story, but in this movie there was no attempt to tie it in. Then they make her back story, and it is a stupid one for the kind of movie it could have been. Actually, I've seen Halle in this exact same situation, but in a different movie where her character worked. 'Boomerang' had her as a graphic artist somewhat oblivious to fashion though she worked at a beauty products company. I would be feeling that deja vu, except that in 'Catwoman' that character doesn't work.
I can see what they were trying to do, Patience Philips, someone who does what she's told, suffers those of lesser talent ordering her around; until she becomes Catwoman, and is empowered. But really, the whole Beauty Products mogul as villain making the evil corporate face cream--please.
Still, Halle Berry looked great in her leather cat suit, and I think that she did a great job with what she had to work with. She threw herself into the role, and really was the feral feline the role requires.
------------------------
Catwoman: White Russian, no ice, no vodka... hold the Kahlua.
=======================================================
Perhaps French director Pitof bit off more than he could chew (sorry, with a French director pretentious enough to go by a single name the pun temptation was irresistible). I heard that he turned in a script that he wrote with another writer that took a more artistic approach, but the producers didn't think it would be commercial enough. So, let's give him the benefit of the doubt, because it seems hard to believe that his artistic approach could be any worse than the final product was.
Sharon Stone can share some of the blame for the fiasco that was 'Catwoman.' It seems like her character was supposed to make a statement about how the fashion world, and Hollywood, too, treats women once they are past a certain age:
----------------------------------
Laurel Hedare: I was everything they wanted me to be. I was never more beautiful. Never more powerful. And then I turned 40 and they threw me away.
=======================================================
But you might say that she just rested on her Laurel. Word is that her cell phone rang while filming and she took the call. Talk about phoning it in. The script didn't help; Sharon, but you could have at least made an effort.
Selected Roles of Sharon Stone
The Muse (1999) .... Sarah Little
Casino (1995) .... Ginger McKenna
Sliver (Unrated Edition) (1993) .... Carly Norris [If you thought she was bad in Catwoman, check Sliver out]
Basic Instinct (1992) .... Catherine Tramell [trashy as it was, this is what she is known for]
Selected Roles of Benjamin Bratt
Thumbsucker (2005) .... Matt Schramm
The Woodsman (2004) .... Carlos [Kevin Bacon was in this, for those of you who like to play Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon]
Traffic (2000) .... Juan Obregón [A Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon Bonanza, though no Bacon, a large ensemble cast that could lead in several directions]
Miss Congeniality (2000) .... Eric Matthews
The Next Best Thing (2000) .... Ben Cooper [Won a Razzie Award for worst couple with Madonna]
Selected Roles of Halle Berry
Monster's Ball (2001) .... Leticia Musgrove [Best Actress Oscar for Halle Berry!]
Swordfish (2001) .... Ginger Knowles
X-Men (2000) .... Ororo Munroe / Storm
Bulworth (1998) .... Nina
Race the Sun (1996) .... Miss Sandra Beecher
The Flintstones (1994) .... Miss Stone [I am just waiting for Sharon Stone to be cast as Miss Berry, and the catharsis is complete]
Boomerang (1992) .... Angela Lewis [Identical Role as Catwoman, but without the whole turning into a cat part]
Jungle Fever (1991) .... Vivian [for this role as a crack who re Halle didn't bathe for a month]
------------------------------------
Catwoman: Cats come when they feel like it. Not when they're told.
=======================================================
Customer Rating:
Summary: Bat Kitty! Bad Bad Kitty!
Comment: This is not the worst movie in the world as some would have you believe. But in a world that has given us "Manos: the Hands of Fate", "Dungeons & Dragons" and "Starship Troopers: Hero of the Federation", that doesn't really say much.
I watched this movie because I have a morbid curiosity about bad movies. Particularly, figuring out where they went wrong. And the consensus here is ... pretty much everywhere.
Let's start with the story. The villain's dastardly plan revolves around marketing a facial creme that rejuvenates the skin, but, if one stops using it, has some very mean side effects. That's about it. MAKEUP! Oh no! The world will never be able to recover from that diabolical blow! Sure, the Joker (in Tim Burton's BATMAN) used personal grooming items seemingly at random to inflict mild cases of death on the unsuspecting public in his sadistic mind game to cause horror among the population of Gotham, but we're talking about a creme here that actually makes you look uglier if you stop using it! NOOOOOOO!
Okay, snark aside, I just couldn't care about the "evil plot" except for the fact that they killed our heroine to keep their little secret.
Which brings us to the next point. Giving Catwoman superhuman powers because she is brought back to life by some mystical Egyptian cat? Really? You're going to stick with that? That's not quite the MO for this character. Sure, she may act catty at times, but there is nothing supernatural about her. Adding this mystical element just distances the audience even further from the character. Revenge we understand. Slight insanity? Got it. Superhuman cat powers? You lost me.
Then there's the kinetic, motion-sickness-inducing direction. Do you think you could lock that camera down for a minute or two? Please? The lighting and coloring don't help in the least. It is just way too visually busy. I understand trying for "artistic" filming, but this is ridiculous.
In the end, the only reason I gave this more than one star is that, for those who want to see how to ruin a movie, this is something you could actually sit through and take notes. As the movie ends, you truly don't care about anyone or anything in the whole movie. So it gets one extra star for the education it gives in bad film making.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great fun movie, bring on the sequel
Comment: I saw this movie on DVD because they never brought it to our cinema. I subsequently tried to purchase it on DVD but that order never arrived. I must have Patience's bad luck with this movie! Either way, I am determined to own it because it's a really fun movie and has a plausible storyline that actually makes sense to me, is thought-provoking and is not overdone or over-acted, contrary to what some reviewers say. I believe those reviewers probably watched a different movie - or are of the comic-book fan crowd who hated the movie before they even saw it.
All the actors delivered fine performances. I especially liked the tie-in with the history of cats, which lent credibility to the plot. One of my favorite scenes is actually not of Halle as catwoman but when Patience (revived) and Lone play basketball - it looked really cool.
I read what Halle said about the movie when accepting her Razzie - although I believe she didn't really mean it (besides what else could she say) especially since she later said she would consider doing a sequel. I say 'bring it on' WB!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Three and a half ... and by they way she acted great!
Comment: This is a totally watchable movie, I love the origin of catwoman and some of the cgi effects, cat movements etc... Specially the fight in the jewelry store. I just hated the corny dialogue ex. "It's overtime!" Corny!!!
I agree a better villain could have been better, but Sharon did a good job. I love Sharon. Maybe if she were a sci fi villain instead of a normal person with a face of marble. Anyway, there are worse things in this movie:
Editing, don't know if it was the directors fault but I hate choppy movies ex. Moulin Rouge etc...
Soundtrack, horrible. I hate the whole pussycat doll wailing in the background. Would have been better just classical film soundtrack.
Costume, the mask was ugly, the pants were ok I guess don't like the bell bottom look. I agree with others that the costume she wore at the jewelry store was much better. I liked seeing her hair and the mask was cute.
So finally her acting. It was great, you people associate everything horrible in the movie with her but it's not her fault. Her acting was not bad at all. The dialogue and corny lines are the faults. But again not all her lines were bad.
She had the cool right cat attitude. Her movements were great, specially when she wakes up from death, just like a cat watching and playing with something. Her changes from geek to cool to bad were right on and her emotions were shown when needed.
So my challenge to the makers in hollywood is to give Catwoman another chance. Do a remake like the hulk with Halle even. Or make her play Catwoman in the next Batman movie, she deserves a chance.
Same thing for Mr. Freeze, re do him and make us forget Arnold playing him. :-)
Customer Rating:
Summary: Catwoman Movie
Comment: This is not a very good movie. Halle Barry did do her best, though.
The plot is basicly this- a shy and quiet woman saves a magical cat's life and is rewarded by becoming a Cat Woman by the cat, who has powers since he's an ancient breed, and starts off robbing. She tries to balence her cat nights and life with a handsome lover police man but evetually fails. Meanwhile, evil is at work as they create a cream that makes you look younger and turns your skin to look like a monster's. Our kitty hero strives to stop them and eventually goes into a full battle with the sole creator, a wild and evil mastermind woman.
I did not like the plot. See, the problem with movies is that if you have a powerful good guy (or girl, in this case) you must have a powerful villian to match their every move in battle. The evilness in this movie was weak and very unlogical. The cream turned her skin to marble- oh, I'm so scared because a powerul catwoman is battling a lady with tough skin! See? That's why this movie wasn't very good and why Spiderman 2 rocked!
The parts with her lover are awkward and too long and predictable. You knew that eventually she'd trip up and he'd discover her kitty life and they'd be grieved over their love, as they must separate in the end.
The two things I did like were-
1: Ever heard of the excellent cat series called Warriors, warrior cats, by Erin Hunter? Well, a movie is probably coming out in the next three years using computer graphics to operate the cats. Well, this movie was very cat-related and I loved the CG cats. That was awesome!
2: The ironic scene where our kitty hero walks off into the moonrise, instead of your classic man hero walking off into the sunset. I liked that.
Overall, it's okay to rent and watch twice, but otherwise not good enough to buy. Fairly good acting, though predictable, great CG cats!!!!!
Sincerely,
~Moonwhisker~
|
|
|
Editorial Reviews:
|
Catwoman is the story of meek, mild-mannered artist Patience Philips, who works for Hedare Beauty, a mammoth cosmetics company on the verge of releasing a revolutionary anti-aging product. When Patience inadvertently happens upon a dark secret her employer is hiding, she is attacked and killed. But Patience is given a second chance - a second life in which someone not quite human resides. Someone with the strength, speed, agility and ultra-keen senses of a cat. With her newfound power, Patience becomes Catwoman, and sets out to stop Hedare's callous plan to unleash an appallingly dangerous product into the world.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
