Have you ever heard of the Bechdel Test?
The Bechdel Test is a test that measures how much women are represented in fiction films.
In order to pass it needs all of the following three criteria:
Have two named women
Have the two women talk to each other
Have the conversation between these women be about anything but about a man
This should sound easy, right?
This may come as a shock to many but the following films don’t pass:
The Lord of The Rings Trilogy (the books pass but not the movies)
Ratatouille
Avatar (blue people movie not the Last Airbender)
The Avengers
The Imitation Game
A Star is Born
La La Land
And many more.
It’s important to note also that if it does pass the Bechdel test, it could have these women talking about something like nail polish instead of men.
Obviously, not passing the Bechdel test doesn’t mean it isn’t a good movie.
Sometimes movies can’t pass the test in order to remain accurate: Like in the case of Ratatouille, the film doesn’t pass because there is only one woman; accurate enough if you’re looking at a real life professional kitchen.
The Bechdel Test makes you wonder though: how many movies would pass the test if the criteria instead was if you had to have two men talking to each other and not about a woman. Can you name a movie that wouldn’t pass?
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