FILM: The Dark Knight Rises Fashionable Selina Kyle (News)

Perhaps the most talked about decision going into the last part of Christopher Nolan's Batman film trilogy was the casting of actress Anne Hathaway for the new female lead role, Selina Kyle. With the female lead of the first two films Rachel Dawes being a new character created just for the films, played by two different actresses and having died in THE DARK KNIGHT it was big news that Nolan was going to use the signature female character of the Batman mythology, Catwoman to finally play opposite Batman in his movies.

Now the Catwoman character has had a shaky existence in films, with Michelle Pfeiffer's excellent performance in BATMAN RETURNS taking a different (read: Tim Burton) approach to Selina Kyle and there was also the Halle Berry's forgettable try in CATWOMAN where the character was loosely based on the DC Comics character. So it is interesting that with THE DARK KNIGHT RISES in production, Hathaway's role as Selina Kyle has taken the forefront over any mention of her Catwoman alias.

And here we can see from shots earlier this week of Anne Hathaway filming scenes for THE DARK KNIGHT RISES in Los Angeles that Nolan is going with a much more stylish, sophisticated looking Selina Kyle than has been seen before in films. Comic readers are familiar with seeing this side of Selina when it comes to crossing paths with Bruce Wayne, and I am sure the films will use this for them to cross paths outside of the capes and cowls as well. The duality of the relationship between Bruce/Selina and Batman/Catwoman is one of the unique aspects of their relationship and it would be a smart direction for Nolan to follow.

Breathe easy fans, Christopher Nolan is weaving another masterpiece ... like there was any doubt?