A question of women in comic movies

You know, I've been wondering since the weekend about why the women in comic book movie adaptations always seem....how can I put it....not as good they could be. I don't know quite why this is. I'm no expert, but I am pretty critical of movies. I'll refer to the most recent big budget DC movies.

Batman Begins? I think most people will agree that the character Rachel Dawes was the weakest link in an otherwise near-perfect adaptation. Was this because she was the only character in the movie that had no comic reference? I don't want to think so, because many other female roles are written well in other movies.

Dawes seemed to be only there to react to Bruce's poor concepts of justice. She was the compass that set him back on track. She had history with Bruce as child, and she was the DA for Gotham. That is all the depth I remember from her, and as a new character in the Batman mythos she needs depth to solidify her among so many already established characters. We know about Bruce. We know about Gordon. We know about Scarecrow and Ghul. Who is this Rachel if she isn't from Year Two? Sadly, all we learn from her (aside from what I mentioned already) is what has happened to Gotham while Bruce was gone. Exposition isn't needed when it can be shown visually.

Unfortunately, I fear she may become a martyr figure for the next film without much more depth being established. She is established as the requisite love interest for the hero, in a job position that shouldn't really belong to her given the chronology of the movie. To keep the fans happy with this newly revitalized franchise, Harvey Dent needs to somehow attain her job.

Superman Returns? Kate Bosworth was, in my opinion, better in her role than katie Holmes was as Rachel, but she still felt a bit weak in contrast to the movie. I think the biggest difference was that Lois is already established from previous movies and the comics. My main issue was that she looked young, a bit too young, for the role. A five year later tag, and she looks five years younger. For her defense, so does Superman - it's just the casting.

Comic book movies have always seemed to lack strong female roles. My guess is that the comics have male leading roles, and that the women just get religaded to a backup role. I don't care so much that the women are not as strongly represented in the story, because the story is about the hero afterall. I don't like it when the female is nothing more than a motivation for the hero, arm candy, or a reporter bent solely on uncovering the secret identity.

Now, there are strong women in comic adaptations. They are just rare. For example Jennifer Connelly in Hulk was, in my opinion, a strong role. She had to be, considering she was basically the only force able to calm a force of nonstop destruction. Another strong role was Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman in Batman Returns.

I have hope for the upcoming Wonder Woman movie, however, because unlike other comic movies the lead is already a woman.