Trying to do this in 20 Minutes before the NyQuil kicks in Friday!

I have not been in the peak of health recently, and have taken NyQuil to counter-act many of the unpleasant physical symptoms of having a cold. Some of you know exactly what that means. Some of you may be about to find out. This week's Friday post is a race against my digestive system to get something coherent written before the medicine kicks in.

The Bechdel Test is a test for media and the depiction of women in it. There are three rules:

1. There are at least two women...

2. Who have at least one conversation...

3. About something other than a man or men.

Mostly this is used as a rough measure of feminism for film critiques.

Recently I have also discovered it is a good measure to see if I'm going to enjoy something or not. I realized today that probably 99% of my favorite movies and TV shows pass this test (Star Wars does not...even though I get Princess Leia rescuing the dashing rogue Han Solo from the vile Jabba the Hut).

I've also found I loose interest in TV shows when they stop passing the Bechdel Test (I'm talking about you, Castle, House and Royal Pains. Shame on you. Stop pairing off all of your female characters).

I think this has more to do with the nature of the writers who manage this rather than feminism though. Writers who use their female characters as more than accessories to their male characters tend to also be more interested in telling new and/or unique stories and writing interesting and witty dialogue. They tend to want to explore all the imperfections and humanity of characters (and all the idiosyncrasies that go with it) rather than rely on established labels and stereotypes to compose a character.

Media that passes the Bechdel Test is more often character driven over plot driven, which is my preferred form of storytelling.

Links!
http://thehathorlegacy.com/why-film-schools-teach-screenwriters-not-to-pass-the-bechdel-test/