If ever there was a time to go all out, it would be on the red carpets of this year's biggest superhero flicks.
Unfortunately, Scarlett Johansson and Emma Stone didn't seize such opportunities for The Avengers and The Amazing Spider-Man.
So I pinned my hopes on The Dark Knight Rises' leading ladies at the New York and London premieres.
US actress Anne Hathaway, 29, who plays Catwoman, and French star Marion Cotillard, 36, who plays Bruce Wayne's love interest Miranda Tate, fared only slightly better than Johansson and Stone on the fashion front.
But it's hardly a ringing endorsement because they're capable of so much better.
But I suppose I should be grateful both weren't decked out in head-to-toe black instead.
| In New York, Hathaway looked statuesque and regal in a sleek white sleeveless draped Prabal Gurung jersey column gown with plunging neckline, peplum detail, bejewelled exposed corset and twisted straps. So why am I not falling off my chair over it? The ultra-feminine silhouette doesn't gel with her boyish pixie crop. And is it me or is she getting alarmingly thin? That could explain why the garment seems to just hang off her. |
 | Cotillard also embraced the white at the same event, in a strapless Christian Dior ballerina-inspired ivory outfit comprising a beaded sleeveless top and frou-frou ruffled tulle skirt. It's a bit too Swan Lake for something as bleak as The Dark Knight Rises, plus Cotillard just isn't suited to such girlishness. The edgy silver spiked T-strap heels by Christian Louboutin - totally awesome on their own - also don't work with the delicate, romantic nature of the dress. But what bothers me most is that awful orange eye make-up that makes it look like she got punched in the limo on the way to the premiere. |
 | I'm really missing the sex appeal of Catwoman in London, especially since Hathaway turned up as a forest nymph. Let's call a spade a spade, shall we? This shapeless shimmering champagne beaded Gucci halter gown with floral embellished neckline is really just an expensive potato sack decorated with potpourri. |
 | Fashion critics fawned over Cotillard's vintage "Parisian chic" get-up in London, but I really wonder what they were smoking. She opted for a Christian Dior dress comprising orange textured strapless bustier and a black-and-silver chequered pencil skirt, accessorised with gold metal waistband, red clutch and red pointy pumps. The bodice sits a little too dangerously low, the asymmetrical faux bob is verging on wacky and the different shades of red just throw me off the whole thing. |
This article was first published in The New Paper.
