The Bechdel test was popularized by Allison Bechdel’s comic strip, The Rule.
The Bechdel test is basically a set of three simple rules:
- The movie has to have at least two women in it.
- The women have to talk to each other.
- They have to discuss something besides a man at some point in the film.
Seems simple enough, right? I thought the same thing. When I first heard of the Bechdel Test, I thought that there was no way most movies made within the last 20 years wouldn’t pass. Surprisingly enough, this isn’t the case! You’d be shocked to find that many popular movies don’t pass this very basic set of three rules.
Out of curiosity, I looked into whether five popular movies made in the past twenty years passed the test!
Here’s what I found:
Nope (2022)
Nope is about a man and his sister discovering something “otherworldly”. They try to capture evidence of this phenomenon.
Did it pass?
Nope. It did not. (see what I did there?)
Flushed Away (2006)
This one is a bit random. But I did want to see where this went.
I feel like flushed away would pass! There’s a good amount of girl power involved in this movie. Rita was a girl boss, after all.
So, did it pass?
No! It only met 1 out of 3 of the criteria.
Twilight (2008)
Okay, this one I really had to look into. By the way, if you don’t watch Twilight and scream, “Bella! Where have you been loca?” at least 80 times during the movie, you’re doing it wrong.
So, did this fan favorite pass the Bechdel test?
Yes! It passed 3 out of 3 rules! Whew, I’m relieved to hear this. You really can’t beat a Twilight marathon with the roomies.
Finding Nemo (2003)
I have faith in this one. There are a ton of girlies in this movie. Dory, Peach, Flo, and Darla, just to name a few.
Okay, holding my breath for this. Did it pass?
It did not! Ouch. This one hurt.
Avatar the Way of Water (2022)
A sequel to Avatar, Avatar the Way of Water, follows Jake Sully and Ney’tiris’ family as they try to overcome the trouble that follows them.
Given that this movie was released just last year, it had to have passed the test, right?
Wrong! It passed 2 out of 3 of the rules.
Obviously, some movies have exceptions. However, I do believe that directors need to be better about their movies passing the Bechdel test! It’s not that hard, guys!
If you want to see if your favorite movie passes the Bechdel test, you can go to bechdeltest.com.