Last night, while I was drooling over shoes at Iron Man, the fashionistas and celebs were gathering for that hallowed night in the fashion calendar: The Met’s Costume Institute Gala.

This year’s theme (corresponding with the Costume Institute’s major show of the year) is Superheroes, and I couldn’t wait to check out how the attendees decked themselves out for this fun fun theme. And after perusing the pictures, I have to say that while there were some great outfits, it was really and truly the shoes that were the most interesting.

The dresses were nice and all, but lots of people tended to interpret Superheroes as being synonymous with Grecian Goddesses, which made for some pretty but uninspired sartorial choices.

The shoes, though? People went wild with their shoes, and I love it.

There was your typical crop of Louboutins, the best of which were the Spiderman-webbing-style blue pair on Diane von Furstenberg and the Rodita zip sandal on Dr. Lisa Airan.

Jimmy Choo was also well represented, particularly by Eva Amurri and Jessica Stam (though Eva’s got some seriously tight hair and some seriously squished boobs going on, and Jessica’s makeup job makes her look like she could use a few more hours sleep at night).

There were some old favorites that we’ve seen on past runways, like Anna Sui in boots from her Fall 08 collection and Vogue’s Valerie Boster in Spring 08 Balenciaga. While I’m not nuts about those shoes or that dress, I must say Valerie is working the shoes in a suitably superhero-ish way without losing the fashion.

You have your goddess sandal look, as exemplified prettily by Thandie Newton (though please try not to look too long at the frighteningly thin legs of the woman in the ugly bright pink tube going up the stairs behind her) and particularly by Barney’s Julie Gilhart, who has my favorite shoe of the night, as well as my favorite outfit, and the one I deem the best combo of superhero and chic.

There were some unexpected bursts of footwear color thanks to Katie Holmes and Tilda Swinton (who wore matching shoes with transgender performer Justin Bond, though hers are a much better color, I’d say).

Some people went for the unexpected like Kathryn Neale Shaffer in leather thigh-high boots with red flames at the tips (very cool, very superhero). And Monsieur Louboutin himself in black and white striped shoes, accessorized by a superheroic BANG on his lapel and a bizarrely Beauty and the Beast pair of Olsen twins who look like an elegant young woman and her frizzy-haired crone of a great-grandmother.

And last, but most certainly not least, there were patchwork shoes all over. The best were worn by Chiara Clemente and Kate Bosworth, and brought some pizazz to their feet, even though neither dress is anything to write home about.

Wait. No. On second look, I’m more than a little in love with Kate Bosworth’s dress. And her shoes. And her eye makeup. OK, well done, Kate.

And well done on the shoes, fashion fans. While I’m not overall that impressed by your superhero choices clothing-wise, your footwear can save the day any day.

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Being a cinephile as well as a shoe lover, I often find myself in a position to be checking out the footwear in movies.

This goes for pretty much any kind of film. Historical drama? Yep. Comic book adaptation? Hell yes.

I’m speaking, of course, of Iron Man, which I saw last night. Even if you don’t like comic books, this one’s a good time in the movie theater. It’s action-adventure and funny and well-directed and -acted, too.

And Gwyneth Paltrow (she of the Givenchy gladiator heels and the Zanotti gladiator sandals) rocks several beautiful pairs of Louboutins. Looks like her recent determination to wear only the highest of heels to her public appearances is leftover from filming.

The first noteworthy pair of Pepper Potts’s pumps (try saying that five times fast) is your basic round-toe black version.

This one can be yours for a mere $550, though I can’t guarantee it’ll give you Pepper’s managerial mastery over the complicated life of your boss/love interest/engineering genius/friendly neighborhood superhero.

But it’s the second pair (worn through the final sequence) that I couldn’t take my eyes off of.

Need to see those close up? I thought so.

A still photo doesn’t convey just exactly how much these shoes look like fetish footwear. The woman not only wears them over metal grates (though, of course, her stiletto heel doesn’t sink into the holes like a mere mortal’s would), but actually running. For her life. It’s unreal. And while my feminist side is up in anger over the fact that Pepper has to trust her life to running in these shoes that must be nearly 6″ high while Tony Stark (aka Iron Man) gets to fly supersonically around the world in a high-tech full-body-armor suit of near invincibility, I also sort of wanted to lick these, they were so beautiful and elegant.

Ah well, we all get to hold conflicting ideologies in our minds when we want them, no? Well, this will just have to be one of mine.

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I think I’m the only one in the world left who actively likes Gwyneth Paltrow. And dagnabbit, I like her sense of style, too! Not always the most flattering, this is true, but she shops outside the lines, and in a way that I usually think looks great on her. So, seeing her out and about for her Iron Man publicity tour has been fun for me. And boy, has she been parading the insanely high heels lately!

But the pair that grabbed my fancy has much more to do with the gladiator sandal trend.

Because how can you not love these Giuseppe Zanotti shiny gold sandals?

(photos from Just Jared)

If you have the cash and want to shell out for these pretty puppies, a very similar (though not identical, despite what other sites seem to say) version is available at Endless for $650.

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Like Jitterbugbaby, I was a bit disappointed when Natalie Portman’s line of vegan shoes debuted at Te Casan.

Tonight, though, I visited the Te Casan website and found a few shoes by Natalie Portman which struck my fancy. While I’m fairly certain that I didn’t see the sandals before, did I overlook this pretty in pink pump? The pom pom carnation is utterly appropriate for spring which, I think, has finally descended on Seattle.

These lace up thong sandals were named “Paine” but they certainly don’t look painful to me. Simple, elegant and oooh, it’ll go with so many spring outfits! They also look like shoes Natalie might wear so let’s hope they show up in some candids over the summer.

Last, but certainly not least, what a great way to look sleek in snakeskin without being cruel to animals in these adorable faux snakeskin toe sandals.

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It’s been a while since I’ve read or seen anything on former Oscar winner, Gwyneth Paltrow. However, recently the internet is abuzz with discussions not on Gwyneth’s latest movie (Iron Man) but her choice of stilleto stunners. They are quite the antithesis of what you would expect from the soft spoken actress, wouldn’t you say?

Reader Mike asked us to ID these 7-inch booties which were seen on Gwyneth.

Photo via JustJared.com

Originally, I thought they might be a hybrid of one of these shoes from the John Galliano Fall 2008 collection, especially due to the tassels, platform, and the bondage and outrageousness of the shoe, but I was incorrect.

Shoesense (thanks!) discovered that the Sun had identified them as being heels made by designer Guiseppe Zanotti. Apparently, they were so high that Gwyneth required support to help her balance and walk properly. Gwyneth has quite the gams to show off, but the mere thought of how painful these might be should, logically, deter any rational human being from getting anywhere close to these shoes much less shell out major bucks for them. Wrong again on my part. There is a wait list for these shoes now. Sigh.

Other sky high contraptions for pain seen on Gwyneth include (from top to bottom): Givenchy peep-toe boots, Burberry boots, and the more easily identifiable Christian Louboutins.

Photos from ThisIsLondon.co.uk

For more on Gwyneth’s crazy shoe selections, visit ThisIsLondon.co.uk.

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