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I hadn’t, until one of our fabulous readers sent me this video, but after watching, I’m really kind of intrigued.
The test originated around 1985 in a lesbian-oriented comic. Many referred to the “test” as over-the-top feminist and didn’t take it very seriously. The Bechdel Test, itself, showcased the cacophony of women and film crashing into one another and what the end result was: women can rarely appear in films without it benefiting the sole purpose of a male-dominated production. The test includes three questions and all can be applied to any movie you can think of, really:
1. The movie has to have at least two women in it.
2. The two women in the movie have to speak to one another …
3. … About something other than a man.
Interesting, right? Can you think of any movie (I mean, I’m sure you can, but just off of the top of your head) where two women interact in a movie that doesn’t include their shared conversations revolving around a man for the most part?
The above video, which I highly recommend you watch, explains the theory in much more detail than I have, plus gives several examples of films that fit the criteria.
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Here’s a test I thought up which is equally as important
The JMD Test
1. Are there men in the movie?
2. Do we watch them poop?
3. Do they fart at each other?
If not, this movie is built upon systemic repression of representation of true men.
If I want to watch a movie about Spider-Man, why does there need to be a scene where two ladies chat about the weather?
We do like to share our intestinal gases with each,whats up with that,we are weird!
Well we just had our first best female director with The Hurt Locker, and that movie definitely doesn’t pass this test. I liked the film quite a bit, but it is funny that it takes a male centric movie about a man who has an extreme talent and has become disenchanted with everything else other than that talent, including his wife(gf) and child, for a female director to win. Let me reiterate that I really, really enjoyed the movie, but that is- among many other reasons- because the director obviously understood her characters. In a way she played the system, making a male centered film, but hey, good for her. My favorite films and usually centered around men, and this is evidence to me that often movies which have significant female characters mishandles them badly and goes with a stock character or an insignificant one. Of course I also have a real thing for war films, so that too contributes- Full Metal Jacket has two female characters, a prostitute and a young girl who ends up being the sniper. I wrote a paper about them, the confusion of sex and violence just saturates our culture- of course it was purposefully included here.
I don’t think that all movies *should* pass this test. There is room out there for many different kinds of movies.
I see nothing wrong with a female director doing a movie about men. (It was a soldier movie, no? And thus logically male-dominated?)
I too like a lot of war movies. I vastly more appreciate a movie like Full Metal Jacket or Black Hawk Down where there are a scant couple incidental women, which is entirely realistic, than something like Braveheart or Enemy at the Gates which include walk-on sex objects (unrealistically and unnecessarily).
So I don’t think those movies should change. It’s just a question of whether there are others out there.
I don’t think they should change either. Like I said, FMJ is one of my faves.
I agree with Kai, I don’t mind movies that revolve around men, it’s the ones (like Braveheart, ugh) that have women who are kind of halfheartedly thrown in without much character development as fuck buddies that bother me. I also like movies that don’t pass the test, but still have a very strong, capable female lead/supporting actress (like Wanted).
I REALLY hate that unnecessary and unhistorical french princess. His wife was a valuable character. She gave meaning to his crusade. The princess existed just to have a sex scene. That was a terrible break in the middle of the awesome battles.
I can think of one movie that passes the test (Avatar)…that’s a bit depressing. And you would think that the criteria wouldn’t be that difficult to fit.
It happens in chick flicks all the time. Look at the movie she pulls out as examples–Fight Club? Back to the Future? Why would those need scenes of women chatting? If she wants to watch movies loaded down with idle chit-chat, someone should turn her onto Kevin Smith, and ask Kevin Smith to make a movie starring primarily women.
Here’s another little test; think of all your favorite movies, the ones you consider the tops of the tops…how many of them have scenes of ladies engaging in idle chit-chat? Or even men engaging in chit-chat, or stuff unrelated to the plot? It can’t be that many. Now, think of all the movies focused on women which contain idle chit-chat…things like S&TC, The Women…how many of those do you consider great movies? If you want to see women talking to each other about whatever, go to the coffee shop and load up some Golden Girls.
Sooooo….two women talking about something other than men automatically = useless banter about shoes and nail polish? Yeah.
Who said it was about shoes and nail polish? But if the main character in the movie is a man–like, for instance, in The Dark Knight–and the two women aren’t talking about a man, which would include the main character and several other people critical to the plot, what the heck are they talking about?
I just left my neighbors garage,we talked for about twenty minutes on trapping leeches,they’re great Walleye bait. He said I didn’t need to waste my money on liver,I guess raw chicken works just as well. Who knew!
That’s the whole point. If the main character is a man, and all other character’s conversations would be about said man, then any women (and any other men) would be just revolving around said man.
It’s not about women chatting – I agree, that would be a horribly boring movie (though I think they sell well!), and that’s not the point at hand.
It would require women in the film to be of sufficient value that they can discuss relevant ideas and issues meaningful to the plot, without just referencing the male lead.
It would tend to require a female lead, or at least a female as one of the leads. And that’s lead character, not actor.
The point is to find a movie *like* the good ones mentioned, but where the women in it are important. A movie in which women do cool things, and advance the plot – not just sit around and chat about irrelevant things.
Personally I don’t want simple idle chatter in a movie from males or females if it’s not plot related, I thought it was slightly odd all the movies that couldn’t fit these three little rules but it didn’t bother me, especially as a lot of those movies were action movies, where people don’t casually talk about anything as someones always about to die.
Well, I’ve been thinking, and come up empty. I don’t watch many movies, but of those I’ve liked, Mamma Mia is the only thing I can think of which satisfies these conditions. and it’s clearly a girl-movie (just probably the only one I enjoy).
But can I count TV? Buffy, Xena, and X-Files all pass this test with flying colours!
Actually, X-Files had two movies!
…but I don’t think the movies had other meaningful women in them.
Yeah.. not very many movies about a woman saving the world or doing anything plot worthy that doesnt contain talk about guys.
If filmmakers want the movie to succeed they will add in the sexy guys who are talked about.. not saying i support this buttt it will be this way.. at least for a while
i personally dont care much if good movies are put out there.. interesting point though
[...] Yawn. We get it — women’s films are boring and they’re all about emotions and junk. Where were the guns? Where were the nameless hot chicks? [...]
[...] — sounds like the very criteria that flunks the Bechdel Test for female characters. There’s also something more than a little troubling about the fact [...]