Consider what you consume // Does it pass the Bechdel test?
by Elise Kervin, second year paramedicine student.
While at home in stage four lockdown you have probably found yourself drawn to Netflix, Stan, Disney plus, watching lots of movies to pass the time, or at least I know I have. But how many of those films you consume actually pass the Bechdel test?
The Bechdel test, created by Alison Bechdel, first appeared in a comic strip in 1985 entitled Dykes to Watch Out For:
The Bechdel test is three basic requirements: one, that the film has to have at least two women in it, two, those women need to talk to each other, and three, that conversation needs to be about something other than a man.
So, what are some movies I’ve watched recently, and do they pass this test?
Hamilton.
This three-hour-long piece of theatre is up for debate as to whether or not it passes the Bechdel test. According to some, it *scraped past* apparently, with a line in a song sung by the Schueyler sisters, about the American Revolution. Some people argue that this show is meant to be representative of a time, hence why women aren’t given much of a voice. It’s an interesting perspective, yet I pose the question as to whether Angelica is really Alexander Hamilton’s equal, if she’s only ever allowed to speak about her feelings for him, when contradicting this, the male counterparts speak about anything else under the sun; and we are not meant to question this.
Birds of prey.
Passed with flying colours. I cannot articulate how refreshing and empowering it is to see a superhero film starring six powerhouse women, whose sole purpose in the plot isn’t as side characters, or as girlfriends. Even the soundtrack was created by some extraordinary women.
Titanic.
This is up for debate; I personally don’t think dying words count (and if you have to scrutinise some last words to determine if the movie is inclusive, I really don’t think it is).
Oceans 8.
Passed with flying colours. This was an amazing film, with an absolutely killer cast of gals. Highly recommend this movie!!
These are just a couple of examples of some movies I’ve watched recently. You can head to bechdeltest.com to see if your faves pass the test!
It sounds like it should be simple enough to pass, right? Well you’d think so, however Hollywood, and you know, the patriarchy, really makes us not question the fact we’re only really seeing cisgender, heterosexual, white, male characters as protagonists, for the most part.
Clementine Ford’s book Boys will be Boys speaks to the fact that most boys grow up with a sense of self confidence and entitlement instilled in them from a young age, as all of their favourite characters are people who look like them; however for young girls, they aren’t given the same opportunity, and this is detrimental later in life. Imagine young gender queer or non-binary children, with next to no on-screen representation.
The Bechdel test gave rise to many other tests: The "Mako Mori test", asks whether a female character has a storyline that is not about supporting a man's story. Kelly Sue DeConnick proposed a "sexy lamp test": "If you can replace your female character with a sexy lamp and the story still basically works, maybe you need another draft."
Society has come along way since black and white silent films, where women were merely there something to be looked at. To be fair, we’re getting more and more representation than we have ever seen, but it’s important to be at least a little critical of the media you consume.
Elise is the 2020 Monsu Peninsula Gender & Sexuality Officer & is studying Paramedicine at Monash Peninsula.