1. Michael Keaton and Michelle Pfeiffer
I said earlier that Batman and Catwoman are like two sides of the same coin. No adaptation captured that more perfectly than Batman Returns. The 1992 film featured Michael Keaton in the titular role, while Michelle Pfeiffer whipped her way onto screen in an equally as career-defining performance as Selina Kyle. It was magic whenever they were on-screen together.
Pfeiffer’s nuanced portrayal of Catwoman made her the perfect counterpart for Keaton’s Batman. The Dark Knight was a lone protector of a grim city full of monsters and outcasts and he was committed to protecting it. He tried having a relationship like a normal person, but that just wasn’t on the cards for him. When he crossed paths with Selina – a woman who also struggled with balance, duality and chaos – he had found an equal.
Here’s the incredible thing: This Catwoman wasn’t an antihero, she was a fully-fledged villain, hellbent on getting back at the society that kept casting her out (and for a time even trying to frame Batman). Her and Bruce were on opposite sides of the law, and yet they were incredibly attracted to each other; perhaps seeing the other as their way of finding true happiness.
Bruce and Selina, Batman and Catwoman; they were opposites and equals at the same time. As Batman himself said in the movie’s final act: “We’re the same”.
And that is the perfect representation of the Batman and Catwoman relationship. Keaton and Pfeiffer outdid themselves here.