Batman
and Catwoman’s relationship, since they
have dual identities, is a dual relationship.
As Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle, they are reasonably tame. This calm relationship is opposed with Batman
and Catwoman’s more hostile if not animalistic relationship. Their love interest, however, is destined to
fail.
Selina
Kyle and Bruce Wayne display relatively normal courtship, unlike Batman and
Catwoman. Bruce and Selina meet, think
each other are cute, go on dates, and carry a very average romantic
interest. Their relationship seems to
have a bit of repression. In most
movies, the man and the woman’s sexual interest is very overt, but it doesn’t
seem like that here. They don’t even
kiss throughout the entire movie. Their
conversations are very surface level, except for when they are at his house,
talking about his “conflicting truths”
Batman
and Catwoman have a more sexual and violent side. Catwoman is deceptive, playing tricks on Batman by using the fact
that she is a woman to seduce then destroy him.
In their first fight scene, there is a slight confusion as to whether
she is trying to hit on him or kill him.
When he punches her in the face she falls over, yelling “How could you, I’m
a woman,” before she takes control of the fight, completing her sentence “a
woman who shouldn’t be taken advantage of.”
Catwoman
and Batman’s relationship are set to fail for two main reasons: their differing
morality and their reclusiveness. Catwoman,
like a cat, does whatever she wants, whenever she wants, from attacking random
criminals in the streets, to completely blowing up a building. Her actions are
what benefit her the most at the time, regardless of its effect on others. She doesn't even have a side to take when it
comes to taking down Max Shreck. She works with Penguin for a while, but in the
end deserts him.
Batman, on the
other hand, is a Dark Knight. Even
though we discussed in class that his motives are ultimately for himself, in
order to really feel right about it, he still has to be the good guy. He fights against evil. Even if the fact that he is a hero is up to
debate, he still thinks of himself as a hero, and heroes don’t work well with
chaotic characters like Catowman. Catwoman
wanted to kill Shreck, and Batman wanted to jail him. In the end, their conflicting tendencies and
ideas of justice contradict their relationship.
As we discussed
in class, they also shun the opposite sex.
Batman, with the death of his parents, is naturally a very reclusive
character who unconsciously wants to be alone.
To have a steady woman forever in his life is against batman’s
character. As for Catwoman, she just doesn't like men. She was killed by a
man. She was almost raped by a man.
Their similar subconscious, reclusive dislike for company of the opposite sex also
inhibits their relationship.
I think the relationship between Batman/Bruce Wayne and Catwoman/ Selina Kyle is way more interesting than that of Bruce Wayne and Vicki Vale’s. I think the primary reason for this is, just as you mentioned, the duality that exists between them. While there is room for them to fall madly in love, we all know it is just not going to happen because they have so much to hide from each other, and it makes us wonder how far their relationship is going to last before it reaches the breaking point. Bruce Wayne has to maintain is social stature as a respectable social gentleman while fighting crime as the dark knight of Gotham, and Selina Kyle has to maintain his job as Shreck’s chief assistance while seeking his revenge as Catwoman. At first, there is a really clear line that separates Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle’s relationship from Batman and Catwoman’s relationship. However, as the story progresses, we see that line fading and eventually, that dual relationship intertwines with each other to a point where they know each other’s “true” identity.
ReplyDeleteJae Yun Choi