Mar 14

tv shows that pass the bechdel test

Will and Grace also scores highly, through Grace-Karen and to a lesser extent Karen-Rosario conversations. Theres maybe 3.5 major female characters (Skyler, Marie, Lydia who came in late, arguably Andrea) and they rarely talk to each other. Directed by Amy Poehler, Moxie is an overt rebellion against the toxic patriarchal systems that are rife in youth culture. Fox Searchlight Pictures. They discuss many different topics through the film, including the trajectory of their lives after graduating high school, but rarely men. TV shows tend to run far longer than movies and thus, most of them end up passing the Bechdel Test. As well as showing that they kicked ass at the lab at the same time. Hilary Duff? Lauren OCallaghan. It's a quiz developed in 1985 by graphic novelist Alison Bechdel and her friend Liz Wallace that reveals just how sexist (or not) any given work of fiction might be. Women make up more than half of the population, but it seems that theres still a problem with representation in films and on television. The three female mathematicians in the 1960s (played masterfully by Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, and Janelle Monae) rarely talk about a man, focusing instead on their goals, their work, and the obstacles that they overcome every step of the way. Were there any women on F-Troop aside from Wrangler Jane? We are now operating in a virtual space, but we can still honor and name the physical spaces we all inhabit. The Good FightWe were fans of The Good Wife, and when The Good Fight aired, we were excited to see some of our favorite characters back and connecting with each other in fascinating and exciting ways. The best movies that pass the Bechdel Test are the ones that really, truly, pass with all the flying colors. 6. What Insecure does better than most shows is showcasing real vulnerability and raw honesty, and therein lies its beauty. Its won all the awards, and for good reason. The Bechdel Test explained like you're five It is as simple as that, and you will do this for every scene in the script. Kee talks to revolutionary leader Julian and her midwife Miriam at many points throughout the movie, and its almost never about a man. The label of his particular examination is taken after a caricature artist, Alison Bechdel. Rick coaches him to tell a story that passes the Bechdel Test, providing a succinct explanation: "Two women, they both have to have names, and talk to each other about something other than a. Most are finally passing the Bechdel test, aka a test that analyzes a scene where two or more women talk about anything else other than men. Overall, women accounted for 25% of those working in key behind-the-scenes roles (directors, writers, executive producers, producers, editors, cinematographers) on the top 250 grossing films in 2021, up from 23% in 2020. Despite having an array of fierce and funny female characters, the last movie of the Harry Potter installments disappointingly doesn't feature a single conversation between the women. It doesnt matter what age you are or if you have kids or not, because its that good. There were a few named female characters, but they were all minor enough that its plausible that they never talked to each other. Big Littles Lies also brings drastically different women together who have one thing in common: Their kids are in the same class. We are now operating in a virtual space, but we can still honor and name the physical spaces we all inhabit. To pass the test, a film must have: 1) Two female characters (some variations of the test say that they must have names, which is fair I think) 2) Who talk to each other. Thankfully, by Toy Story 3 Pixar had included a conversation between female characters that involved something other than men. Another Best Picture Oscar winner that despite being groundbreaking in its representation of a gay black man, fails to have two women with names having one single teeny-tiny conversation about anything. The women definitely rule the show and its no surprise that women are also behind the scenes as well here. In 10 hours, not one interaction? Definitely not. The movies follow The Bride as she kills her way through the list of assassins who targeted her, working her way up to Bill - their boss and her former lover. The View from the Window by Carina Paredes-Rivera. For a movie to pass The Bechdel Test, it must contain just one thing - a. This special show gives us hope, makes us feel good, and reminds us that aging doesnt have to be awful (despite all those anti-aging ads). She joined GamesRadar+ in 2017, revitalizing the news coverage and building new processes and strategies for the US team. 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. Younger is a marathon-worthy series about a fortysomething who pretends to be in her twenties in order to break back into publishing. This usually occurs when Elaine overlaps briefly with a minor female character in a scene. Breaking out the results by show and season and plotting against broadcast year, there is some sign of an upward trend. The next plot explores further how male and female characters interacted in each shows episodes. Broad City created by Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson super modern and funny. Then it might be kinda shocking to find out that out of 2,500 movies, only about half pass the test. Hidden FiguresThis top box office earner deserves every bit of its acclaim, and easily passes the Bechdel test. A scene fails this step if any of the three lines in the back-and-forth mention any of the main male characters by name, a male pronoun like he or his, or any of a short list of other male identifiers, such as men, boyfriend, dad, or mr. Happily there have been some absolutely stellar standouts as of late which not only pass the Bechdel test, but also move beyond this low bar into portraying powerful and moving performances with real substance and impactful storytelling. She works closely with Abbey Whalen (Darby Stanchfield), and has numerous confrontations with First Lady (Bellamy Young). When Issa speaks to herself in the mirror. Heres how the test works a piece of fiction has to satisfy three requirements: Thats it. Dead To MeJen and Judy are complicated. Some Western animated shows would fail a reverse. Have you ever had someone comfort you after a break up by saying "There's plenty more fish in the sea?". Its a must watch! 3. for more than one minute of screen time. Fantasies are notoriously male-dominated (Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings, we see you!). Her character, Cassie, is a fun-loving flight attendant who gets into a huge problem. Having acquired hundreds of sitcom episode transcripts, I can apply the test programmatically to each episode of these . 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. Its authentic to life, and theyre all trying to make their way in New York. The Bechdel Test is a test for whether a movie contains: Its commonly used as a commentary about the lack of female representation in Hollywood. It's worth noting though that this is in a series that shows women's asses at every opportunity & had gold-painted dancing girls earlier. Um, no. It gets uncomfortable at times, but their stellar performances keep us glued. Zoe Delahunty-Light. And to be clear, passing doesnt mean the movies good or bad. We think its time to go beyond it. The percentage of women working as directors on the top 100 films retreated from 16% in 2020 to 12% in 2021. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: PartII. Wrong. So, love them or hate them, you can probably relate to at least one of them. The Bechdel Test, if you're not familiar with it, is a benchmark for movies developed by Alison Bechdel in 1985. For example, the archive has almost 120 films passing for 2019 out of those couple hundred that were added. and indemnify Journal Media in relation to such content and their ability to make such content, Next on the list is the 2010 biographical drama movie The Social Network which also doesn't pass the Bechdel test. 1. Note: Your privacy is important to us, so please know that your information will always remain confidential! The series based on Robert Jordans epic series begins with the premise of a world ruled by women who have to deal with a lot of very bad men. They might as well be talking to themselves (or, more likely, the audience). When they do interact its usually to talk about their place in society with regards to the men and their plans. Now, thats not to say that theyre all friends or even that their relationships are all healthy. The Morning ShowOof this last season was a toughie (hello, news media + New York + #MeToo + Covid = messy! News images provided by Press Association Most of the cast is female. Oh and hey, Meryl Streep is going to be in Season 2. While reading a critical review of a popular show which noted that it didn't pass the Bechdel Test, it occurred to me, a long time fan of Hannibal Some of the most popular films of all time fail The Bechdel Test, and often for reasons you may have never considered. Yes, but her relationship with French agent Lasalle is significantly more interesting. By role, women accounted for 17% of writers (even with 17% in 2020), 26% of executive producers (up from 21% in 2020), 32% of producers (up from 30% in 2020), 22% of editors (even with 22% in 2020), and 6% of cinematographers (even with 6% in 2020).. Absolutely. On June 30th, 2008, Jennifer Kesler . Despite having three strong female characters in Arwen, Eowyn, and Galadriel, theyre all in completely different parts of Middle Earth and they never even meet, much less talk to each other. A movie is typically no more than 2-3 hours long, while the complete run of a successful TV series could add up to over 100 hours. And here are ten that dont pass the test. The Bechdel Test (BT), which checks for a rudimentary level of female-centricity in media, has elsewhere been covered thoroughly for movies, with a crowd-sourced manual approach, but not, to my knowledge, for television, except at a high level or in very selected cases. We encourage you to, Ten Recent TV Shows That Pass the Bechdel Test, TV shows and movies that pass the Bechdel test, research conducted on film and gender in 2021, How to measure the impact of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Training, Understanding Social Identities in the Workplace. 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: Movies with female directors have higher Bechdel scores. ** Okay the first pilot actually has two women speak to each other. For the most part, the shows that pass the Bechdel Test are shows about women who are devoted to their careers, Leslie Knope, Olivia Pope, Alicia Florrick. Cartoonist and graphic novelistAlison Bechdel came up with a test when she was younger that a movie had to have: For her to see the movie, it had to pass these three standards, and this test was first featured in her 1985 column Dykes to Watch Out For.. Even shows that are deemed feminist sometimes dont pass the testand, frankly, its frustrating. There must be two female characters in the scene. Its pass rate drops dramatically at steps 2 and 3. Girls TripGirls Trip is everything. We all play a part in creating a more equitable and just workplace and world. To search the database, enter a search term below. For a movie or TV show to pass the test, it has to feature at least two women talking to each other about a topic other than a man. (Lets ignore the fact that the alien was a walking penis-monster, as this was before the Xenomorphs had established sexes the Queens werent introduced until 1986sAliens.). How it passes: The two leads, and indeed the majority of the cast, are women and the only time they really talk about men is when they briefly explain their crimes or discuss trying to get Geres Billy Flynn to represent them. 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. Jordan keeps the formula fresh", Cocaine Bear review: "Not as snort-out-loud funny as you'd hope", Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania review: "A fun sci-fi getaway", Magic Mike's Last Dance: "A glossy but fluffy threequel", The Mandalorian season 3, episode 1 review: "We wish it went into lightspeed a little quicker", The Last of Us episode 7 review: "Tragic and tender in equal measure", The Last of Us episode 6 review: "Features one of the show's best and most affecting moments", The Last of Us episode 5 review: "A pulse-pounding reminder of how scary the show can be", You season 4 part 1 review: "Breathes new life into the killer drama", Takes you closer to the games, movies and TV you love, Try a single issue or save on a subscription, Issues delivered straight to your door or device. So viewers would expect it to pass the Bechdel test with flying colors - and it does. To pass this step I looked for a three-line sequence. And it definitely passes the Bechdel test, with a diverse cast of women focusing on their careers and friendships. But even then, she doesnt really speak. But the show is very, very real. (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.). The Bechdel Test (BT), which checks for a rudimentary level of female-centricity in media, has elsewhere been covered thoroughly for movies, with a crowd-sourced manual approach, but not, to my knowledge, for television, except at a high level or in very selected cases. Over the years, there has been an increasing number of movies that pass the Bechdel test. That doesnt mean its not funny, though! The 25 best movies that pass the Bechdel Test with flying colors By Lauren O'Callaghan, Louise Blain, Zoe Delahunty-Light, Rachel Weber, Sam Loveridge last updated May 06, 2022 The best movies. But, even though this movie passes the Bechdel Test, it doesn't pass the Dangerous Bear Trope Test. The movie: Best friends Enid and Becky spend the summer after high school trying to figure out what theyre doing with their lives and along the way they meet a lonely, middle-aged man named Seymour, who Enid strikes up a friendship with. pic.twitter.com/rW4NDxMObf Seamus Ryan (@meanderingtripe) March 1, 2021 The movie: Annies best friend is getting married so naturally shes Maid of Honor. We encourage you to, Nine Recent TV Shows and Movies That Pass the Bechdel Test, have a look at this article to see who sits behind the camera, Ghostbusters (The one with all the women), How to measure the impact of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Training, Understanding Social Identities in the Workplace. Star Trek: DiscoveryThe latest addition to the Star Trek universe is soooo goooooood. They exchange quips a few times, such as when Mrs. Weasley utters the iconic line of "Not my daughter, you bitch" to Bellatix as she protects Ginny. Rebecca Nicholson. Through the artful presentation and deconstruction of implicit and explicit social mores, filmmaker Julia Ducournau forces us to confront the animal in all of us. If youre behind on this one, too, then Im honestly kinda surprised you even know what movies are. The Bechdel test is a simple test to evaluate films (and other media) for portrayals of women. Star Wars: The Last JediWhile Carrie Fisher has always been a strong female presence in the Star Wars series, The Last Jedi takes female interaction to a whole new level. Grace and Frankie Scared her people will turn on her, she runs away and loses emotional control plunging the Kingdom into an eternal winter. Lauren OCallaghan. The actresses, who play characters of the same first names, started the show as a web series that was later picked up by Comedy Central. submissions or preferences. I think it's a show that has great female characters. Whats not to love? This movie about the pressures and pleasures of family-life, will have you teary . Her struggle with alcohol comes to a head and it was powerful to see how her friends supported her without enabling her. Omit "The" from search term for best results. The Bechdel Test, if youre not familiar with it, is a benchmark for movies developed by Alison Bechdel in 1985. Some deviations from reality were for humor; some were for drama. 6) Encanto. Cue epic action sequences, horrendously troublesome gameplay tactics, and even a little bit of romance. The Bechdel test is a method used to determine the representation of women in film. Doesn't Lara need any friends? Anyone else feel like going for a little drive? SuperJail, unless JailBot is female. We can look at the results for each show, broken down by test step. To pass the Test, the movie must include at least two women, who have names in the film, and that have a conversation with each other about something other than a man. She talks to her father, her boyfriend, the security guard at her fathers bankand not a single woman. Besides Friends, Will and Grace, and Married With Children, the other shows have a lopsided number of male characters, so are unlikely to be left without a male-male storyline. How about Girls? But if females are in the story, theres no reason cant they be involved in at least one conversation with each other. 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. Well, if you're looking for a female fish in the sea you'd be hard pressed to find one in Nemo's world. She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, the critically-acclaimed reboot of the beloved 80s animated series, is a shining example of how to pass the Bechdel test. "Glitch". It uses the same lines identified above as part of a back-and-forth between two characters, and sums these by the gender of the pair of characters involved: female-female, male-male, or male-female. The sparkling, progressive dialogue pretty much consists of, He doesnt need you, he has me., And Andrea the android talks to Nurse Chapel about a man in What Are Little Girls made of. BA1 1UA. If you ever wondered what it would be like if thirtysomething women pretended to be middle school-aged girls, well, you dont need to wonder anymore! An extra big kick in the nuts to Star Wars fans: The prequel trilogy actually passes the test (partially). 95 percent of the characters are female, and they communicate with each other constantly throughout the series about non-male-centric topics. Mary Berry Cooks / Headline Publishing Group / Headline Publishing Group. supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and the Office of the Press It could have been so easy to write just ONE more female into the story. All Posts; The Rundown; Entertainment News . If so, then the very first episode aired passes. 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. Hm, Red Dwarf probably cuts it, too, with only one main character even arguably female, and very few appearances by any character not in the main cast. *WaitShore Leave has two women on the planet at the same time. 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. Seriously, George, why is the whole galaxy a sausage fest? In order to pass, a film must feature at least two women on screen talking to each other about. Here are ten television shows today that pass the Bechdel Test. She quips that the last film she was able to go see was Alien in 1979. Padme speaks to Shmi Skywalker in Episode I and to her handmaidens at various points in Episode II, and in both cases, they discuss things other than men. How it passes: Its easy to see how Bridesmaids (opens in new tab) passes the Bechdel Test - all the main characters are women and they talk about almost everything but men - but on the surface, it doesnt seem that female positive. (Though it should be called the Bechdel-Wallace test, according to the lesbian cartoonist Alison Bechdel, who helped create it.) By providing the information below you will receive early-bird invitations to our events, exclusive musings tailored to your interests, and access to our curated mentorship program. Shes brilliant and weird and is really really good at choosing great roles. 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. Henry V. Surprisingly enough, this classic Shakespearean History passes the Bechdel Test. InsecureThe real love between Issa and Molly gives us all the feels like all of them. This may feel a bit more like a soap opera than a drama, but it absolutely passes the test! These 11 iconic films, including "To All the Boys I've Loved Before" and "Mean Girls," pass with flying colors. Most of them fail, even ones full of female characters. Data scientist and former climate physicist, with special interest in politics and sports analytics, Having acquired hundreds of sitcom episode transcripts. To pass the Bechdel test, a movie must follow three rules that are supposed to show if the story has a good representation of women. To pass the Bechdel test, a work of fiction must fulfil the above criteria at least once. How it passes: Ghost World (opens in new tab) is basically all about the friendship between super sarcastic teen Enid and her best friend Becky. Big Little LiesSpeaking of Laura Dern, lets talk about television for a moment. With Kristen Wiig and Rose Byrne going head-to-head in this hilarious bridesmaid-off, expect a lot of laughs and plenty of super awkward moments. Please know that these are only a portion of the new television series passing the test. There are also a handful of episodes that do not pass either test (grey). 1. Next up, consideration of film beyond this basic test. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Its not always pretty, but its a true representation of female relationships. Have we missed anything? Summit Entertainment New York? If there were ever a female landing party member and a love interest for Kirk in the same episodethey usually just glared at each other. Black Widow, the two characters never interact to have a conversation. The characters must talk about something other than a male character. Toy Story is such a beloved film to so many, but it unfortunately doesn't pass the test. Does she have an interesting relationship with McAvoy? The movie also includes Jess sister Pinky and a whole host of other named women on the football team, and besides that, the basic message of the movie is that women can do anything even become professional footballers. The readers of Dykes to Watch Out For (where the test originated) probably love this show. Are there any TV shows that fail the Bechdel Test. The twentysomething BFFs navigate life in New York City while getting into the most bizarre yet weirdly relatable situations. 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. The movie, which tells the story of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, features a few female characters, but they never talk to each other. The female characters must talk to each other. Beyond the central relationship between those two women, any time theres a moment between women features the show at its best. The Bechdel Test asks three key questions about a movie's female characters. After a chat of what The Hunger Games actually means, Katniss comforts her sister Primrose, whos had a bad dream. When Ive seen people discussing the Bechdel test with regard to television, theyre usually talking about individual episodes and not the series as a whole. The test asks whether a film features at least two women talking to each other about something other than a man. It also crushed the Golden Globes in 2017. Its just to get people thinking about gender and how its presented in film. This test, put forth by cartoonist Alison Bechdel in a comic strip from 1985, posits . This site uses cookies. A film that excavates layers of myth and memory to find the elusive truth at the core of a family of storytellers. Content copyright Journal Media Ltd. 2023 Registered in Dublin, registration number: In three films, none of them says a word to each other. Theres glitter, spandex, and a lot of fighting. Its exciting to see them roll up with their emotional Away bags and yet be really nervous to unpack them in front of each other. Friends, Will and Grace, and Married With Children had more conversations between different gender characters than same gender. The test is named for Alison Bechdel, creator of the comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For, who made it known to the world with this strip. In fact, the example Bechdel gave as a film that passed the test was Alien, simply because Ripley and Lambert have a brief conversation about the alien. It could be about dog poo. men. Law & Order in the early seasons wouldnt have, with no starring female cast members. I dont think its really within the spirit of the test to count a brief conversation in a single episode of a TV series that ran for years as a pass.

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tv shows that pass the bechdel test