Catwoman (film)
Catwoman is a 2004 American superhero film directed by Pitof and written by John Rogers, John Brancato and Michael Ferris from a story by Theresa Rebeck, Brancato and Ferris, with music by Klaus Badelt. It is loosely based on the DC Comics character Catwoman. The film stars Halle Berry, Benjamin Bratt, Lambert Wilson, Frances Conroy, Alex Borstein, and Sharon Stone. Its plot centers on Patience Phillips, a meek graphic designer, who discovers a conspiracy within the cosmetics company she works for that involves a dangerous product that could cause widespread health problems. After being discovered and murdered by the conspirators, Patience is revived by an Egyptian mau cat that grants her superhuman cat-like abilities, allowing her to become the crime-fighting superheroine Catwoman.
Catwoman
- Theresa Rebeck
- John Brancato
- Michael Ferris
- Denise Di Novi
- Edward L. McDonnell
Sylvie Landra
- Village Roadshow Pictures
- Di Novi Pictures
- Frantic Films
- Maple Shade Films
- Catwoman Films
- July 19, 2004 (Los Angeles)
- July 23, 2004 (United States)
104 minutes[1]
United States
English
$100 million
$82.1 million[2]
Produced by Village Roadshow Pictures and Denise Di Novi's Di Novi Pictures, Catwoman was released in the United States by Warner Bros. Pictures on July 23, 2004. The film received generally negative reviews from critics, with many considering it to be one of the worst films of all time. Criticism was directed at the performances, direction, visual effects, editing, costume design, pacing, plot, score, dialogue and unfaithfulness to the source material, including the lack of connection to Batman.[3][4] It also performed poorly at the box office, grossing $82.1 million against a budget of $100 million. The film received seven Golden Raspberry Award nominations and won in the categories of Worst Picture, Worst Actress, Worst Director and Worst Screenplay.
Plot[edit]
Artist Patience Phillips is a meek people-pleaser whose main support is her best friend Sally. She works for a cosmetics company called Hedare Beauty, which is ready to ship a new skin cream called Beau-line that is able to reverse the effects of aging. However, when Patience visits the R&D laboratory facility to deliver a redone ad design, she overhears a discussion between scientist Dr. Ivan Slavicky and Laurel Hedare, the wife of company-owner George Hedare, about the dangerous side effects from continually using the product. Laurel's guards discover Patience and are ordered to dispose of her. Patience tries to escape using a conduit pipe, but the minions have it sealed and flush her out of it, drowning her. Washed up on shore, Patience is mysteriously revived by an Egyptian Mau cat named Midnight which had appeared at her apartment earlier; from that moment on, she develops cat-like attributes.
From Midnight's owner, eccentric researcher Ophelia Powers, Patience learns that Egyptian Mau cats serve as messengers of the goddess Bast. Patience realizes that she is now a "catwoman", reborn with abilities that are both a blessing and a curse. Disguised as a mysterious vigilante, named Catwoman to hide her identity, Patience, under cover of darkness, searches for answers as to who killed her and why. Eventually, her search (which includes finding Slavicky's body and later being accused of his murder) leads her to Laurel. She asks Laurel to keep an eye on George, to which Laurel agrees. However, when Patience confronts George (who is attending an opera with another woman) as Catwoman, he reveals that he knows nothing about the side effects. The police led by Patience's love interest, detective Tom Lone, arrive and Catwoman escapes. Later on, Laurel murders George for his infidelity and admits to having Dr. Slavicky killed because he wanted to cancel the product's release. She contacts Catwoman and frames her for the murder. Tom then takes Catwoman into custody. Laurel plans to release Beau-line to the public the following day.
Patience slips out of her cell and confronts Laurel in her office, rescuing Tom; who came to question Laurel after second thoughts about Patience's guilt in the process and revealing that Laurel is the one responsible for her death. Laurel reveals the product's side effects: discontinuing its use makes the skin disintegrate, while continuing its use makes the skin as hard as marble and the user impervious to pain. During the fight, she scratches Laurel's face several times, causing Laurel to fall out of a window and grab onto a pipe. Laurel sees her rapidly disfiguring face in a window's reflection, and horrified, she fails to grab hold of Patience's outstretched hand and falls to her death.
Although Patience is cleared of any charges made against her regarding the deaths of Dr. Slavicky and the Hedares, she decides to end her relationship with Tom by choosing to continue living outside the law and enjoying her newfound freedom as Catwoman.
Missy Peregrym appears uncredited as the Hedare factory computer monitor image (Beau-line graphics model), depicting the bad effects of the beauty product.[5] A photograph of Michelle Pfeiffer as Selina Kyle in Batman Returns is among various photographs that Ophelia uses to explain the history of former Catwomen.[6]
Production[edit]
Development[edit]
With Warner Bros. developing Batman Forever in June 1993, a Catwoman spin-off film was announced. Michelle Pfeiffer was cast to reprise her role from Batman Returns,[7] Tim Burton became attached as director, and producer Denise Di Novi and writer Daniel Waters also returned.[8] In January 1994, Burton was unsure of his plans to direct Catwoman or an adaptation of The Fall of the House of Usher.[9] On June 16, 1995, Waters turned in his Catwoman script to Warner Bros., the same day Batman Forever was released. Burton was still being courted to direct. Waters joked that "turning it in the day Batman Forever opened may not have been my best logistical move, in that it's the celebration of the fun-for-the-whole-family Batman. Catwoman is definitely not a fun-for-the-whole-family script".[10] In an August 1995 interview, Pfeiffer reiterated her interest in the spin-off but explained her priorities would be challenged as a mother and commitments to other projects.[11]
The film labored in development hell for years with Ashley Judd as the lead in 2001,[12][13] but she eventually dropped out[14] so Nicole Kidman was considered.[15] When Warner Bros. canceled a Batman vs. Superman film scheduled for 2004, the studio decided to quickly produce Catwoman as replacement, starring Halle Berry.[16] Berry chose to be involved with the film after the cancellation of Jinx, a James Bond spin-off featuring her character Giacinta "Jinx" Johnson from Die Another Day (2002).[17] Josh Lucas was considered for the role of Tom Lone.[18]
Reception[edit]
Box office[edit]
Catwoman earned a gross of $40,202,379 in North America and $41,900,000 in other territories for a worldwide total of $82,102,379 against a production budget of $100 million.[2]
The film grossed $16,728,411 in its opening weekend playing in 3,117 theaters, with a $5,366 per-theatre average and ranking #3 alongside The Bourne Supremacy and I, Robot.[23] The biggest market in other territories being France, Spain, Japan and Mexico where the film grossed $5.2 million, $4.05 million, $3.05 million and $2.9 million, while topping the Bulgarian weekend listing.[24]