Jungle Red! Filmdom's Campiest Catfights

There are few things as so shamelessly satisfying as a good old-fashioned catfight. You know the kind: tension between two women percolates for an entire film, leading to a campy display of slapping, hair pulling, kicking, wrestling, and name-calling.

For as long as films have been made, there have been catfights, with one involving Mary Pickford and Mabel Normand dating to as far back as 1910. The 1939 film "The Women" introduced the term "jungle red" to allude to the film's endless stream of catfights (including one where Rosalind Russell bites Paulette Goddard's leg.) When you think about it, catfights are an enduring tradition; it's the catfights that, in some sense, have kept millions of viewers coming back season after season for any number of the "Real Housewives" franchises and "RPDR" competitions.

But like everything else in life, some are better than others, which has inspired us to choose some of Hollywood's most memorable catfights.

Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. 'Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?

In terms of great on (and off) screen feuds, few are as delicious as that between Bette Davis' Baby Jane Hudson and Joan Crawford's Blanche Hudson. While it is true that the fight between Davis and Crawford lasts for the entire film, there is one particular scene that finds Davis – in an Oscar-nominated performance – literally beating the crap out of Joan Crawford, something that no doubt made her the envy of many Hollywood actresses at the time.

Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh. 'Single White Female'

By the time that "Single White Female" was made in 1992, 30 years after "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?," the catfight had surely evolved into something much, much gorier. While this scene is campy compared to our standards today, it remains one of the most bad ass woman-on-woman fight scenes in modern cinema. The fact that much of this fight takes place in an elevator makes it all the better – and more ridiculous.

Charlize Theron and Teri Hatcher. '2 Days in the Valley'

Four years after Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh beat the crap out of one another, Charlize Theron and Teri Hatcher took the catfight one step further. Part of what makes this scene so delectable are the campy one-liners, gems like "now lower your voice you little bitch!" and the ruthless way that Theron and Hatcher literally go for the jugular.

Jamie Lee Curtis and Tia Carrere. 'True Lies'

Three years before James Cameron became a household name with "Titanic," he directed one of the most epic, edge-of-your-seat fight scenes between two women that film has ever seen. Kicking each other's asses in a car speeding over a bridge while Arnold Schwarzenegger trails them overhead in a helicopter is a prime example of the kind of insanely over the top action climaxes that 90's cinema perfected.

Neve Campbell and Denise Richards. 'Wild Things'

20 years after "Wild Things," Denise Richards would become one of "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills," and I think we can speak for all viewers when we say that we kept waiting for Richard to engage in an all-out brawl like the one she had with Never Campbell. "Wild Things" was a cultural touchstone at the time for many reasons, and this scene rightly went down in history as one of the most outrageously enjoyable. How can you top a scene where Richards calls Campbell a cunt and then throw her into a pool? You can't.

Uma Thurman and Vivica A. Fox. 'Kill Bill: Volume 1'

This isn't only one of the greatest catfights of all time, but it's one of the greatest fights of all time, period. Vivica A. Fox trained for six months to be able to pull this off, and she and Thurman spent four days shooting the film's most memorable brawl. No matter how many times we've seen this over the years, it still maintains its allure.

Uma Thurman and Darryl Hannah. 'Kill Bill: Volume 2'

This scene starts at a 10 and only gets more intense as it goes on. Like the above scene with Vivica A. Fox, many consider this ruthless display of female-on-female combat to be one of the greatest ever filmed. Macabre, wildly violent, and pretty damn funny, this six-minute fight plays more like a three act Opera. The fact that Thurman and Hannah couldn't stand each other on set makes this all the more fun to watch.

Faye Dunaway and Diana Scarwid. 'Mommie Dearest'

Containing some of the film's most iconic lines, this is the scene where Joan Crawford and her daughter, Christina, finally have it out with each other. The most delicious part about this scene is that it shows Dunaway at her most unhinged, which is a feat in and of itself. After spewing some choice words at each other, Dunaway lunges at Scarwid, crashing into a table before she pins her to the ground and tries choking her to death. It takes Carol Anne and Barbara to pull a screeching Dunaway off of her to stop her from killing her. Pure gold.

Patty Duke and Susan Hayward. 'Valley of the Dolls'

In a scene that manages to trump even "Mommie Dearest" in sheer camp, this delectable scene from 1967's "Valley of the Dolls" is a standout scene in a film filled with ridiculous standout scenes. Here, aging diva Helen Lawson (played by Hayward) finally has it out with a fresh-out-of-rehab Neely O'Hara (Duke), and the scene culminates in Duke flushing Hayward's wig down the toilet. The only thing that would have made this scene more iconic is if Judy Garland had played Lawson, as was originally planned.

Marlene Dietrich and Una Merkel. 'Destry Rides Again'

Long before Uma Thurman came alone, there was "Destry Rides Again," a 1939 film that contains what many film buffs call the most entertaining catfight scene of all time. Our standards of entertainment have changed some since then, but there's no denying the sheer thrill that comes from two icons like Marlene Dietrich and Una Markel beating the ever-loving crap out of one another. While we couldn't locate a clip of the specific scene, it's worth a watch today: even by modern standards, this one hits the spot.