Kate McKinnon was everything. This method probably fails to catch some cases where the topic of conversation was, broadly speaking, a male character, but a three-line sequence occurred without mentioning him by name or pronoun; but it seems too harsh to throw away the whole scene if a male is mentioned anywhere in the scene, since often scenes can involve multiple conversations between different groups of characters. The movie: Following the careers of the human computers Katherine Goble, Mary Jackson, and Dorothy Vaughn, Hidden Figures explores the rampant racism (and sexism) the three figureheads endured during their time working at NASA during the space race. Growing up, TV was mostly used as a way to entertain oneself. Killing EveVillanelle and Eve are the two stars of this thriller series and have a relationship like weve never seen before. The test has three criteria: 1. the movie must have at least two female characters, 2. who talk to each other about something other than a man, and. It could have been so easy to write just ONE more female into the story. Have we missed anything? Mrs. Maisel is about a woman who is getting a divorce from her husband who cheated on her and finds her voice as a comic in the 1950s/60s and to be clear, she is definitely seen as a female comic. We are now operating in a virtual space, but we can still honor and name the physical spaces we all inhabit. 1. Often, the two women must be named, prominent characters to meet the criteria. Im not completely certain, but possibly the original Star Trek? We think its time to go beyond it. Seinfeld, Frasier, and The Office have more male than female main characters, so inevitably there are many more male-male than female-female conversations. The show is set in the world of 80s womens wrestling and follows an out-of-work actress who decides to achieve fame by wrestling. It gets uncomfortable at times, but their stellar performances keep us glued. But it easily passed the Bechdel test, focusing on their badass careers saving an entire CITY and their friendships. While theres been some improvement, much work is left to do. That said, I wouldnt be terribly surprised if MASH** didnt pass even that loose version of the test. 3) About something other than a man. But its still surprising to find out that some of the most popular films of all time fail the test, and often for reasons you may have never considered. In one installment of her comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For, one character informs the other that she will only go to see films in theaters that have adequate female representation. 483623. Users are reminded that they are fully responsible for their own Atomic BlondeYes, please give us more Charlize Theron! Omit "The" from search term for best results. Others such as Bridgerton, The Nevers, and Yellowjackets make the list, too. Avatar (2009) James Cameron's 2009 blockbuster movie does have strong feminist themes but fails the Test in one key aspect: its strong female leads Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) and Dr. Grace Augustine . Emma Stone chills, sings, dances and colour-coordinates her outfits with her three gal pals, buuuut the friends themselves are never named. In 2020, the archive shows that 78 films passed the Bechdel Test out of 329 films released in the U.S. and Canada. Movies with female directors have higher Bechdel scores. If you have a mixed ensemble cast its not unusual for it fail both the Bechdel test and the reverse Bechdel test because its rare for only the men or the women to have a conversation without talking about the opposite sex. While there are two female characters, Snow White and the Evil Queen, the latter is not given a name in the film. To pass this step I looked for a three-line sequence. The Bechdel Test is a metric used for measuring how women are represented in a given film. The only problem is that the conversation is about Jake, who, you probably noticed, is a man. In fact it can be pretty spectacular, especially when youre hanging out with other women! The movie: The Bride is hellbent on - surprise surprise - killing Bill because he and his assassins tried to kill her and her unborn child many years ago. I cant remember a landing party with more than one female. The Bechdel test was designed by cartoonist Alison Bechdel in 1985. First, the film must have at least two female characters. But what makes this show pass the Bechdel test so handily is her relationship with her manager played by the brilliant Alex Borstein (she is everything). Leia and Rey have more agency than weve seen women have in previous movies, and one of our favorite scenes is when Laura Derns character (Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo) and other female soldiers were discussing their next military move. In fact, theyre kinda just flat characters who the male characters ignore or bang in bathrooms when its dramatically appropriate. Cocaine Bear is the latest in a long line of movies to portray bears as bloodthirsty beasts, clamoring for the chance to feast on innocent humans. It could be about dog poo. One difference between what we found in our broader sample of 1,794 films released between 1970 and 2013 and the analysis at BechdelTest.com of about 5,000 films is that BechdelTest.com shows 56. She later also attributed the idea to her friend Liz Wallace and to Virginia Woolfs writings. Theyre primarily white and primarily male and it makes sense that those who control the stories, will ensure they reflect their own world views. This is straightforward, as the transcripts contain scene indicators, usually. Miramax Films. Director: Sarah Polley | Stars: Michael Polley, John Buchan, Mark Polley, Joanna Polley. Pixar. Some Western animated shows would fail a reverse. Visit our corporate site (opens in new tab). So, what is the Bechdel Test? There were a few named female characters, but they were all minor enough that its plausible that they never talked to each other. A lot of Hollywood films fail this test miserably and portray women in a sexist and unfair way. In order to pass the test, a film must feature at least two women who speak to each other on a subject that does not revolve around men. Land acknowledgements are a way for us to reflect upon the duality of our work while we work within our team, our community, and our client organizations to promote greater inclusivity and abolish inequities, we ourselves still perpetuate and contribute to various forms of historical and present oppression. Whether related to law, business, or politics, Diane, Lucca, Marissa, and Liz in particular had stunning moments of grace, confidence, and jaw dropping cool that we simply loved watching. Yes, Good Girls is about three women who find themselves caught in an organized crime ringyet its not that dark (except for a few scenes). It also crushed the Golden Globes in 2017. Well, if you're looking for a female fish in the sea you'd be hard pressed to find one in Nemo's world. Some of the most popular films of all time fail The Bechdel Test, and often for reasons you may have never considered. The Duchess of York casts "no judgment" toward her nephew. It doesntmatter. Henry V. Surprisingly enough, this classic Shakespearean History passes the Bechdel Test. Probably because, well, just have a look at this article to see who sits behind the camera. Kristine Kochanski was a major character in seasons 7 and 8, but Holly had changed back to a male appearance by that point so I dont think Kochanski ever spoke to the female-looking version of Holly. Next up, consideration of film beyond this basic test. Never saw it, but Im to understand its woman centric. Fail. The movie, which tells the story of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, features a few female characters, but they never talk to each other. Director and Producer James Cameron first wrote the script in 1994 and it took a whole 15 years before the film was made and released. Definition Of Bechdel Test. Stay tuned by signing up for our newsletter! Votes: 13,610 | Gross: $1.60M. The best movies that pass the Bechdel Test are female-positive and great watches in their own right. 1. Having acquired hundreds of sitcom episode transcripts, I can apply the test programmatically to each episode of these sitcoms, to compare the shows and track changes over the course of their runs. Id think similar reasoning would apply to the Sopranos, the Wire, The Shield, etc. REVIEWS. HelloGiggles.com is part of the Dotdash Meredith Beauty & Style Group. Literally, it can be about anything but a man! Her struggle with alcohol comes to a head and it was powerful to see how her friends supported her without enabling her. If youve never seen Workin Moms, stop what youre doing right now, open Netflix, and cue up an episode ASAP. This test is otherwise known as the Bechdel/Wallace test or the Bechdel Rule or Mo Movie Measure and is marked as a measure of gender depiction in the films. When she meets Jules, a fellow female footballer, she cant help but join the local womens football team, but this causes major problems for her home life and Jess finds herself torn between what she wants and her familys expectations. The Bechdel Test, also known as Mo Movie Measure and The Bechdel-Wallace Test, is a method used in media criticism to gauge the degree of representation and development of female characters within a work of fiction, and therefore, any gender bias against women that may be present in it. We check over 250 million products every day for the best prices, New games for 2023 and beyond to add to your wishlist, The world's number one sci-fi, fantasy and horror magazine, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty review: "Builds on the core quality of the Nioh games", Destiny 2 Lightfall review-in-progress: "There is no redeeming this campaign", Dungeons & Dragons: Onslaught review - "Novel enough to tempt even jaded skirmish gamers", Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen review - "Evocative and well-realized", Dragonlance: Warriors of Krynn review - "Kernel of a great idea", Luther: The Fallen Sun review: "Will appeal to die-hards and newbies alike", Creed 3 review: "Michael B. 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For more information on cookies please refer to our cookies (Episodes with scene breaks not properly detected are excluded from the step 1 calculation; this applies to all The Office episodes, so no step 1 point is drawn.). Fantasies are notoriously male-dominated (Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings, we see you!). But alas, many Marvel movies do not actually pass the Bechdel Test. It doesn't hurt that Rapunzel gets to do her fair share of saving the day. Toy Story is such a beloved film to so many, but it unfortunately doesn't pass the test. Starring Jeon YeoBeen (as Hong JiHyo) and Afterschool's NaNa (as Huh BoRa), "Glitch" is a dazzling celebration of female friendships and WLW relationships, and the theme is brought out with the utmost grace and delicate nuance. The test and its rules were first mentioned in Bechdel's 1985 comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For and has three (and later added four) simple rules: So if you want to watch a TV show that passes the Bechdel test and shows the full picture of what it means to be a woman, try turning on one of these TV shows about female friendship below. (will pass the test, but female characters are still underrepresented) Big Little LiesSpeaking of Laura Dern, lets talk about television for a moment. 20th Century Fox. Books? If so, then the very first episode aired passes. She+ Geeks Out was originally founded on land that is the traditional territory of the Massachusett and Pawtucket tribes, and which is still home to descendants of these peoples. The Flight AttendantWe arent Big Bang Theory people, so we didnt have much of a frame of reference for Kaley Cuoco, but wow does she and her castmates do a spectacular job. They trade quips a few times, like when Prof. McGonagall makes a comment about always wanting to use that spell to Mrs. Weasley when she brings the stone statues to life, or when Mrs. Weasley calls Bellatrix a bitchbut no one actually responds and, yknow, talks. As a reminder, the Bechdel test is named after Alison Bechdel who introduced the concept as part of her Dykes to Watch Out For comic series in 1985, but she attributes it to her friend Liz Wallace, who attributed it to Virginia Woolf. Heres an excerpt on research conducted on film and gender in 2021: After reaching historic highs in 2020, the percentages of women directing top grossing films declined in 2021. Her pregnancy is discussed with the surprisingly sympathetic assassin Karen Kim, plus her last talk with O-Ren Ishii in the snow in particular is touching as they gradually admit their respect for each other. services and Heres how the test works a piece of fiction has to satisfy three requirements: Thats it. There are a couple guys on the prison staff, but they tend to talk about the prisoners or their boss Fig, who is a woman. She-Ra and the Princesses of Power. Most any military-based show. * I cant remember Uhura ever talking to Rand or Nurse Chapel.**. 3. Women make up more than half of the population, but it seems that theres still a problem with representation in films and on television.