What is The Bechdel Test?
The Bechdel Test is a tool used by feminist theorists that checks whether a text – primarily movies – has accurate female representation. The test is the ultimate tool to distinguish whether a text is non-misogynist. When in doubt, ask these questions about your screenplay as you're writing it!
The three simple questions are:
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Does it have at least two women?
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Do those two women talk to each other?
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Do the women talk about something besides a man?
Citation:
Alison Bechdel, “The Rule,” Dykes to Watch Out For (Ithaca, NY: Firebrand Books, 1986), 22.
What Are the Benefits?
1.
It turns out, movies that pass The Bechdel Test make more money! A study done by Time’s Up found that within the 350 top-grossing films released between January 2014 and December 2017, the ones that passed the test made on average $618 million, and the ones that didn’t averaged $413 million.
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Using The Bechdel Test can help writers avoid using toxic gender tropes. Often, we see female characters longing for the male protagonist and only shaping that man’s character development. Some examples are Ramona Flowers from Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010) and Claire from Elizabethtown (2005). In those instances, the woman is not her own character but rather an extension of the male lead. The test makes it so at least two female characters must talk about something besides a man, making it difficult for them to rely solely on a man in the film. In the end, complex and well-rounded female characters are almost guaranteed.
One question, would you want MORE or LESS people to watch your film? The answer is obviously more! One of the most important parts of the art of film is the audience that watches it, and a successful one has tons of people going to see it. The Bechdel Test gives a film a wider audience because more than just men can relate. It is no wonder films that pass the test make more money, because more than one gender is appealed.
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The Bechdel Test allows for films with better, and more equal female representation! As half of the US is women, half of the lead roles in films should be women, too. Even in 2021, only 41% of the top-grossing 100 films in 2021 had a “a female lead/co lead driving the plot.” We are so close to that 50% mark, and if more writers use The Bechdel Test we definitely will get there sooner.*
4.
41%
50%
*DISCLAIMER: The Bechdel Test is certainly not perfect, in the sense that the female representation it promotes is not intersectional. The test does not consider the lack of women of color in the film industry, and Feminist Film does not want to ignore this issue. In fact, only 11% of the top-grossing 100 films in 2021 included a Woman of Color as the lead. Feminist Film wants to promote a Feminist industry for ALL women, not just white ones.