Sunday, July 29, 2012

Gwen Stacy vs. Catwoman: Good-Girl or Femme Fatale?

Anne Hathaway as Catwoman
Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy



Seeing as this is my first official post to this blog, I decided the topic ought to be rather grand. I struggled a bit at first, but then I thought: what is grander than the two superhero blockbusters that came out this summer (
The Amazing Spider-Man and The Dark Knight Rises)? Or better yet, what is grander than seeing two iconic superheroes' leading-ladies and their wardrobes (especially since these leading-ladies are style icons Emma Stone and Anne Hathaway)?


The Amazing Spider-Man was a pretty enjoyable film, made even better by Emma Stone playing Gwen Stacy, Peter Parker's first love interest. Her smart, good-girl character, without a doubt, required a wardrobe that would reflect these qualities, whilst still remaining cute and feminine. 
Throughout the film, Gwen mainly wears simple dresses and skirts, often paired with a matching cardigan or pea-coat and her staple knee-high brown leather boots. 
She sticks to Earth-tones, primarily greys and blues, which compliments the somewhat dark and dangerous nature of the city they live in.
Though her "look" was obviously put together for a character who is still in High School, it is an appealing look, as it is ideal for the Autumn and Winter seasons. In all honesty, I will definitely attempt to add a bit of Gwen Stacy-ness to my post-Summer style.
Here are some designers who also channeled the Gwen Stacy-look for their Fall 2012 RTW collections:
Alice + Olivia
Charlotte Ronson
Dsquared²
Lela Rose






The Dark Knight Rises
, on the other hand, I must say was rather disappointing. All the hype was worthless, considering the movie was only good during its last 30 minutes. The only thing that kept me going throughout it was Anne Hathaway, who marvelously portrayed the iconic Catwoman (a.k.a. Selina Kyle).

Since Catwoman has been played by numerous actresses over the decades, it was crucial for me that Anne Hathaway's rendition would come across as the queen of them all (though Julie Newmar will always hold a special place in my heart). 
Recalling the last two Catwomens' (Halle Barry and Michelle Pfeiffer) horrendous wardrobes, I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome of this one's. Rather than going for the at-first-wallflower-then-oversexed-dominatrix-ensembles, this Catwoman was always elegant, yet subtly sexy, even when not wearing the mask. 
All Selina's outfits mainly consisted of sophisticated black dresses and overcoats, whilst her alter-ego's catsuit was a standard body-con, with thigh-high boots and elbow-length gloves (and a nice utility belt, for accessories' sake). 

Although no one would really be able to pull off the catsuit in everyday life, there are elements of Selina's wardrobe that I would more than gladly adopt (especially her airport-escape look).

Here are some designers who went for the Catwoman-look in their Fall 2012 RTW collections:
3.1 Phillip Lim
Alexander McQueen
Alexis Mabille
Catherine Malandrino













Overall, it's a pretty tough decision to make. Should one go for the sweet, girl-next-door look, or the mysterious, woman-in-black style? 


Can't decide. 

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