Hello all,
It's been awhile since I wrote about some of the film catfights that have had a profound influence on me over my formative years. The other reviews seem well received so I've written another one that will focus on the catfight in the 1999 David Bailey scfi thriller "The Intruder".
This is a classic case of stumbling across an unexpected catfight in what is a mediocre sc-fi film. In the pre or early Internet age such serendipitous discoveries often made them more impactful in my head. They certainly elicited a stronger erotic response since they were so unexpected - typically a racing heart and and instant erection! The dawning realisation that a catfight is about to happen is uniquely pleasurable given our fetish. Its nice to imagine the film makers secretly knew this would be reaction from many people.
In this case, the confrontation occurs between characters played by Charlotte Gainsbourg and Marianne Therien (I shall refer to them rather than there character names). I won't go into the details, but Ms. Therien's character is essentially a ghost and the late first wife of Ms. Gainsbourg's husband who died under strange circumstances. The struggle occurs in some bizarre alternative quantum realm which exists outside of time. Hence the strange optical effects and visual distortions used in the scene. Thankfully it is not enough to ruin our enjoyment of the scene.
The catfight itself is not particularly long or explicit. The confrontation starts off balanced but becomes a bit more one sided as Charlotte's character is chased around the apartment. She does eventually win however by shooting and killing the ex wife (and thus completing the time loop). However the scene has stayed with me over the years for a number of reasons.
I was watching it with a friend back in 2000 when I was a student. As the catfight started I remember trying to keep a blank face and shifting my seating position to hide my erection! Neddless to say, my later viewings of that scene were certainly more private affairs!
Below are two links, the first is a YouTube link to the fight itself. Unfortunately it is not good quality and misses all of the buildup.
https://youtu.be/dLt8DgeTMVEThe second link is where the complete film can be viewed for free (a least in the UK). The buildup starts at the 1 hour 23 minute mark. Use this site at your own risk.
https://rebarbects.monster/movies/play/0187995-suspicion-1999?mid=17&sid=ebk2j22njnncq6jaceqpt2qgfa&sec=90fdafe1e856b31ef812cfcc396b959537e20133&t=1667079108Below are my thoughts and observations on the scene.
#Tastefully Erotic
My first is just how generally sexy and tastefully erotic the scene is for a "serious" female confrontation in a main stream movie. Most modern film catfights play down this aspect to prevent accusations of exploitation. However, this scene successfully balances being sexy and not being overtly seedy. Both women are attractive and feminine. Marianne revealing her gorgeous legs by just wearing a shirt whilst Charlotte is attired in body hugging dress which shows of her pert derriere and shapely legs. The confrontation is femine in style (slapping, tussling, wrestling etc) with lots sexy grunting and groaning. The catfight is well directed and has a real cinematic quality to it, often lacking in porn fights.
#The Buildup
The build to the catfight is delicious and escalates, at least initially, into a jealousy fueled battle between the two women. Charlotte almost seems to be claiming her husband as the current wife whilst Marianne refuses to believe what is happening and saying that he loves her instead. For me, any catfight fueled by jealousy over the love a man is a massive turn-on. Such a motivation really adds spice and fire to a catfight. The Frwl gypsy catfight being another good example.
The jealous frisson between the two is obvious as the current and ex-wife initially confront each other. Charlotte's character attempts to calmly explain the situation. However, the things escalate rapidly as the two argue over the husband and who is the legitimate wife. Marriane's character is spoiling for a fight and angrily throws a vase of water over Charlotte. Charlotte, who upto that point was trying to be reasonable, suddenly explodes in anger and launches herself at Marriane with threats of her own. The transformation from demure wife to enraged catfighter is really sexy, as the actions of her husbands ex-wife bringing out her inner cat.
#Fighting Style
The fight (at least initially) is balanced and includes one of the most arousing sequences in any female fight I've seen in a recent mainstream film.
The two women launch themselves at each with a barrage of threats. Charlotte rapidly loosing her coat in the process.
The two struggling beauties fall to the floor and engage in a fierce, legs locked, wrestling battle. Each woman frenizedly slapping and clawing at her rival's face. The upper hand is exchanged multiple times as they battle it out. The camera switching between their pained facial expressions as they wildly rain feminine slaps on each others faces and bodies. The shots of their locked shapely legs as they tussle are wonderful. The lighting highlighting their curves. I've never seen a vicious slap fight like this in a movie catfight. Both women desperately fighting, struggling and getting as good as they give.
As noted many times before on this board most serious modern film catfights are brutal MMA slugfests where nearly every female protagonist seems to be (or mysteriously turns into!) an unarmed combat expert (irrespective of their character!). The feminine fighting style here is consistent with the two characters, neither which are MMA experts, just two normal women attacking each other the only way they know how. The two desperately using their raw natural female instincts to destroy their opponent. This results is a sexy, realistic struggle that doesn't feel gratuitous or exploitative. Modern film makers please take note - you can have a catfight scene with sexy overtones whilst still respecting the integrity of the characters.
#Soundtrack
As per my previous reviews, I think the often underrated element of any catfight scene is the music and sound effects. If done well it can really enhance the drama and eroticism of the fight. For some fights the dramatic music adds to the sense of the struggles intensity like in "From Russia With Love" . For others, the lack of music and just the sounds of the feminine struggle are enough, like in "Creatures the World Forgot" . In this case there is some light ambient music but the sound focuses on that of the combatants. From the threats uttered as they first clash together, the sexy grunting, groans and squeals as they grapple on the floor and the desperate crys as they
tussle around the room. Some of these are almost sexual in nature and really convey the desperation of their battle. It certainly boosts the eroticism of the contest still further. All of this I found highly arousing.
Anyway, these are my thoughts. I really enjoyed the feedback on my previous posts so it would great to hear back from people on these sexy struggles or the state of movie catfights in general.
