Glory

This is going to be a short blog, however I must make a point. Glory received a 0 out of 4 Bechdel stars. This isn't necessarily bad because of the fact that it is mostly set in the civil war. Most of the army had men not women, so it makes sense that it wouldn't pass.

Swiss Family Robinson

Swiss Family Robinson is a Disney movie that was shown in theaters in 1960. It was directed by Ken Annakin, and shot in New Guinea. It is a family adventure movie that is pretty well known Disney classic. Will it pass the Bechdel Test?

Plot:

Swiss Family Robinson is a movie about a Swiss family that is sailing to help form a colony in New Guinea. There is a mother, a father, and three brothers. On their way to New Guinea, their ship gets into a storm on the seas. It crashes onto the rocks and the family manages to sail to sea. The rest of the movie incorporates mishaps and exciting moments that happens to the family.

Female Characters:

Mother (Yes That is Her Name):

Mother is of course the mother of the family. She has a husband who is known as father and three children named Fritz, Ernst, and Francis. She is very loving, responsible, and cautious.

Roberta:

Roberta is a girl who's grandfather is a captain of a ship. The ship she was on with her grandfather gets attacked by the main antagonists, the pirates. She is first seen dressing as a boy in order to not be kidnapped, killed, or worse, rape. The older brothers are infatuated with her (considering that she is the only female besides their mom.) Her notable traits are being flirtatious and sensitive.

 How the Female Characters Are Treated:

The females are treated with kindness and respect, particularly because of how they are the only females on the island. I can understand this due to the fact that if you are a straight male and there is only one female that you are not related to stranded on the island, you have to be nice to the only person you could have a relationship with. Seeing as how the mother is very important to the entire family, she is treated nicely as well.

Overview:

In conclusion, Swiss Family Robinson gets a 3 out of 4 Bechdel stars for barely passing the Bechdel test. There is a scene where the only two female characters are talking about dresses in curtains. So sadly the movie with mostly undeveloped female characters passed the Bechdel test barely.

My Best Friends Wedding

My Best Friend's Wedding:

My Best Friend's Wedding is a romantic comedy made in 1997, that was directed by a man named P.J. Hogan. The movie was a global-box office hit that year, and received mainly positive reviews. The movie includes two famous actresses, Julia Roberts and Cameron Diaz. This is also widely regarded as one of Julia Robert's most well known movies.

But does this movie pass the Bechdel test? Already we can see there are at least 2 female characters. However, we must see if it can pass the two other standards.

Plot:

My Best Friends Wedding is a movie about a food critic named Julianne Potter who is 27 years old. One day, she receives a call from her best friend Michael O'Neal. Michael and her are very close and promised to each other that when both of them become 29 years old, if they still haven't met someone by then they would marry. Julia expects that he is asking to marry her but is surprised to discover that he is going to marry a girl named Kimmy Wallace. Julia is surprised and instantly realizes that she loves Michael. The whole point Michael called was to ask Julia to be the maid of honor for the wedding. Julia excepts but only because she is determined to ruin the wedding.

So the whole movie is about Julia's attempts at ruining the wedding for her best friend, only for her benefit and possibly Michael's.

Female Characters:

Since there are many female characters in the movie, I am just going to put in the two women that were the most involved in the plot.

Julianne Potter:

Julianne is the main protagonist of the movie. She is very serious about her career and not on her love life. She is first seen being very critical about food and seemed highly respected in her career. She has a friend named George, and a best friend named Michael. When Michael tells Julianne he is getting married, she gets very jealous. She is sarcastic and passive aggressive to Kimberly, the bride to be. Julianne doesn't really like dresses, pink, purple, or makeup very much either. She can also be very persuasive. She doesn't like stereotypical love, and public displays of affection either. During the entire movie she makes bad decisions that greatly affect her relationship between her best friend Michael, his wife Kimmy, and even her other friend George. Overall, she is a very independent minded woman who makes bad decisions that impact her relationships with people.

Kimberly Wallace:

Kimberly "Kimmy" Wallace is a young woman that left college to marry Julianne's best friend, Michael. Her family has a lot of money, which has let Kimmy travel to many places. She went to college to become an architect, but wasn't fully happy with her life. She then met Michael. After a few months of dating, they became engaged. Michael loves Kimmy because of how she let's him kiss and hug her in public, and how she doesn't mind traveling, even to places she's already been before. She is very enthusiastic and hyper. She is the epitome of extrovert. Whatever Julianne is, the exact opposite is Kimmy. To Julianne she is viewed as somewhat of an antagonist, even though Kimmy is excited to become friends with someone that knows Michael well. In a nutshell, Kimmy is a very nice girl that is friendly towards many, and wants to be the best wife she can be for her fiancee Michael.  

How the Main Female Character is Treated:

Julianne:

Julianne throughout the entire movie is mostly treated with respect, and authority. Though many seem to criticize her views on love and marriage. Her editor is her very good friend, George, who likes to crack jokes at her. Kimberly is very nice to Julianne, until she realizes her intentions at the end of the movie. Kimmy likes to hug Julianne which makes her uncomfortable. Michael and her are like how many close friends are. They do a ton of things together and Michael enjoys Julianne's company. By the end of the movie however, he seems a bit cold to Julianne for how she behaved. (Honestly, she deserved it for trying to ruin his wedding because of jealousy.) All of Kimberly's family like to judge the fact that she isn't married yet. They make fun of her views on society and feminism which makes her uncomfortable. You can see that Julianne doesn't really fit in with Kimmy's family very well.

Conclusion:

My best Friends Wedding actually receives a 3 out of 4 Bechdel stars for barely passing the Bechdel test. It has at least two female characters, and two of them speak often. Kimmy and Julianne rarely speak about weddings and their views on marriage. However, because there is that small conversation, the movie does pass the Bechdel test. Personally, I do not like this movie because of how Julianne treats Kimmy, and how Kimmy's family can be a bit rude to Julianne when it comes to talking about marriage. I also did not like the obsession with Michael because he didn't seem like a very great guy. So, My Best Friend's wedding has made a strong 3 out of 4 Bechdel stars even when the movie was focused on relationships between men and women.

   

Star Wars Episode IV a New Hope

Welcome to my first movie review for my independent study project! Those of you who are not familiar with my blog, please read my original blog post regarding my project.

Today we are looking at Star Wars Episode IV a New Hope. This movie is a classic to many in the cinema world, and plays a major part in pop culture. Star Wars was written and directed by George Lucas and released into theaters in 1977. It included a cast of new actors at the time. Actors such as: Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, and Harrison Ford. The plot was fresh with a science fiction theme. Science fiction was not popular at the time, but this movie is credited with advancing the science fiction genre. This movie had many rough patches during the development period. Star Wars was almost never released, but became a smash hit, and became the highest grossing film during the 70's. Star Wars was critically acclaimed by critics and fans. It received 10 academy award nominations, including best picture. Star Wars won 6 out of 10 academy awards. Star Wars expanded everyone's imagination, and opened a new world for young minds.

The main question I am asking is, does this cult classic pass the Bechdel Test? In order to analyze the movie we will first go over the plot. (Note: This is my interpretation of the plot.) Then we will analyze the female character/s. Finally, we will focus on how other characters act around the female character/s. (Also, note that this is going to have spoilers about the movie in the blog.) So without further ado, lets see if Star Wars episode IV can pass the Bechdel Test. 

Plot:

Star Wars begins in a galaxy far far away in the midst of a war between the Empire forces and the Rebel Alliance. During this war, one of the Rebel ships have been attacked by the Empire. One of the members of the ship is the diplomat Princess Leia. Who is holding top secret information for the Rebel forces and a message for a man named Obi-Wan Kanobi. She gives this information to a droid named R2-D2, and he and his friend C-3P0 barely escape the ship with their lives. The droids instructions were to locate Obi-Wan Kanobi and find a way to Alderaan to deliver the information. Leia is then captured by soldiers of the Empire, (otherwise known as Stormtroopers.) She is planned to be sent to the Empire's headquarters, the Death Star.

So Star Wars episode 4 is all about how the droids get to their destination, and the rest of the films are what happens after that.

Female Characters:

Princess Leia:

Princess Leia is a diplomat for the rebel alliance. She is first seen early in the movie and is portrayed as a very confident woman. She is strong, a leader, and is loyal to the rebel alliance. It is also shown that Princess Leia would rather die than give up important information about the alliance. She is an important female figure in her galaxy and is well respected to most.

Aunt Beru Lars:

Sadly this character is the only reason why Star Wars gets a 1 out of 4 stars instead of a 0 out of 4 in the Bechdel Test. This is because it passes the quantity of female character standard. She only has a few lines and every single one is about Luke Skywalker or her husband Owen Lars. The majority of her lines are: "Oh Luke is just a kid." She is on scene maybe 3 or 4 times before she dies and that's pretty sad.

The Aliens: (Jawas, Aliens in the Cantina, Sand People etc., etc.) 

These aliens display no female or male gender. We also can't understand a lot of their conversations. So there is no way to analyze if they are male or female.

The Countless Stormtroopers in the Death Star:

Here is my argument about the gender of the Stormtroopers. They can be aliens or humans of different genders. However the only ones that talk are the male humans, so that simple debate wouldn't change if the movie passed the Bechdel test or not.

*Also there were numerous female mechanics in the background during the end of the movie. I thought this was really cool!

How the Female Characters Were Treated by Other Characters in the Movies:

Aunt Beru Lars:

Aunt Beru wasn't really treated poorly. She would occasionally say something and then it seemed like people would disregard her comment. This was disappointing to me because some of the things she was saying would be worthwhile. Sadly, after talking to Uncle Owen about how he should give Luke a chance at going to this academy thing, she and her husband die a few minutes later into the movie.

Princess Leia:

Now there is something I would like to point out about Princess Leia. She starts off as an amazing female character who seems like the main protagonist of the movie until she gets captured. She is seen lurking in the shadows and even is shown shooting a Stormtrooper, and killing him/her/it. When she is captured, Darth Vader and Grand Moff Tarkin actually treat her like a threatening enemy with a lot of power. Though yes they may treat her poorly, but that is because she is a prisoner. They are threatening her because they are intimidated by her and know of her high rank in the rebel alliance. I noted that I was deeply disturbed during the entire scene of the blowing up of Alderaan. The way that Grand Moff Tarkin and Darth Vader acted in it was very creepy. There was too much of them trying to get up close and personal to her and uncomfortable shoulder grabbing. They seemed more menacing than needed.

Now you may be thinking, Leia seems like a strong woman, everyone must treat her with respect. I would agree with you for the most part. But there are two characters that objectify her SO MUCH. Their names are Luke Skywalker and Han Solo. They make me so mad whenever they make a stupid comment about her looks or how they should date her. In order for me to fully describe my anger I will analyze by character about each rude thing they do to Leia.

Luke Skywalker:

Luke Skywalker is basically just a creepy pubescent kid who has never seen a young woman. I swear, he takes one one look at Princess Leia from R2-D2's message and he's all like "OMG she's so pretty!!!" And he looks starstruck. He has this dumb look on his face while staring at her. C'mon Luke!! Have you never seen a person before? Get a grip! The worst part is when he rescues her from the Death Star. When he opens the prison cell, he just stares at her. This obviously creeps Leia out and she asks him what he wants. At what point was director George Lucas thinking: "Oh and in this shot Luke should just stare at her for 3 whole seconds. This is totally not creepy." Though Luke isn't the worst of the sexist duo. That award goes to a space criminal by the name of Han Solo.

Han Solo:

This guy, this guy!!! Han Solo is sooooo misogynistic and creepy! If I were Leia, I would not even try to talk to him. Han Solo only saved Leia for her money. But as soon as he meets her he begins objectifying her and giving nicknames. He makes numerous comments about the possibility of being in a relationship with her. His snarky one liners to her pisses off Leia many times, and yet he actually thinks he might have a chance at dating her. Han Solo has NO right to disrespect her. She is an important figure in the rebel alliance and he calls her sweetheart! Also during the Death Star trash scene, he is trying to help Leia climb something. While he is trying to help her he isn't really helping, he is just touching her in places like her thighs, butt, hips, and torso. At some point Leia should have known that he wasn't actually helping her up, he was trying to make and excuse to touch her.

To show how unacceptable his behavior was to Princess Leia, I am going to give a real world example to you. Imagine going to meet the President of the United States, Barack Obama, with your friend. This is an amazing experience and you want to make a good first impression on the president. When you go to meet him, your friend decides that he wants to make rude comments about Obama and call him sweetheart. When the President makes a comment about how rude your friend is being, that friend makes another comment about the presidents sass. Then a few more hours later President Obama wants to go play basketball. After playing basketball for a while, your friend is trying to help the President slam dunk. While "helping" the president he keeps touching his butt. After playing basketball, President Obama decides to have lunch with you and your friend. During lunch your friend made a comment about possibly being in a relationship with the President. After leaving the white house, you then feel ashamed of how your friend behaved around the President and ruined your chances of ever re-meeting with the President.

Now you can understand my anger at Han Solo. If he wanted money, he should have treated Princess Leia with respect instead of making rude comments and touching her in unacceptable places.

The Verdict:

Overall this movie has got 1 out of 4 Bechdel stars for having at least 2 female characters. Star Wars has a strong female character named Princess Leia who is treated rudely by other main characters. Overall the movie failed the Bechdel test, even with the strong female diplomat Princess Leia.

  

Welcome To My Independent Study!

Hello to all who are visiting my new blog. My name is Ambrosia Naramore-Winfrey and I am working on an independent study for my class. This is an entertaining way to chart my results and an interesting view on what it's like to blog! My independent study is focused on the Bechdel Test. The Bechdel Test was created by an American Cartoonist named Alison Bechdel. In her comic strip, Dykes To Watch Out For, Alison made a strip about one of her characters talking about the Bechdel Test. Here it is:

This comic sparked the creation of the Bechdel Test, and was created to point out the flaws of women representation in movies. Though the test can be tailored to a person's interests, it has 3 main rules.

These are:
1. Must include at least 2 female characters
2. These women must have a conversation with each other
3. The conversation must be over topic not about a man

This can not only be applied to movies, but television shows and video games as well. The Bechdel Test is important to the world because it is a way to introduce that there needs to be more diversity in media. Though there can be flaws to be this test, it has a good idea in place for society.

Now this test peaked my interest a few years ago when I saw this on a Feminist Frequency video seeing if the 2011 Oscars best picture nominees pass the Bechdel Test. It was surprising to me because only 2 officially passed, out of 9. Let me restate that. Only 2 out of 9. Here is the video:

Which made think, what about my movie collection? Do my movies pass the Bechdel Test? So now I have decided to watch all of my movies to see if the actually pass this test. Using an experiment and a blog.

The Experiment:

Using the 3 rules I mentioned before, I decided to watch all my movies and test them.

I first recorded all the movies I own by genre:

Classic: 1                                           Romantic Comedy: 5                           Musical: 2

Comedy: 5                                         Thriller: 6                                             Family: 5

Science Fiction: 6                              Action: 6                                              Historical: 5

Fantasy: 5                                          Animation: 16                                      Miscellaneous: 2

After watching a movie in my collection I will rate it with stars going from 0 to 4:

0: Did not pass any requirements

1: Passed only 1 requirement

2: Passed 2 requirements

3: Barely passed all three requirements

4: Passed all 3 requirements with flying colors

I then will use Class Dojo to record all of the movies ratings and to randomly select movies for me. Basically just a recording system. Then I will post my results on this blog and more things I noticed about the movie! My hypothesis is that if I test my movies then only some will pass because of women are normally portrayed in all genres of movies.

Conclusion:

I hope you all enjoy my blogs about the Bechdel Test and that this can add to how women are viewed in media. :)