Advertisement
Home Celebrity Celebrity News

How many of the ‘best’ films of the 21st century pass the Bechdel Test?

The BBC have created a list of the best films of the 21st century. But how many pass the Bechdel Test? We find out.

So, turns out Mullholland Drive is the best film of the 21st century.

Advertisement

According to a new survey conducted by the BBC that took the opinions of 177 critics into consideration, David Lynch’s surreal noir film is the best film made since 2000.

Also in the top ten? There Will Be Blood, Spirited Away, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and The Tree Of Life.

If you’re still in the dark about the Bechdel Test, it’s simple manner of determining how much thought has been put into female character development. To pass, the film is required to feature two women, who have a conversation, about something other than a man.

Plenty of huge films don’t pass. Things like Lord of the Rings (all three of them), every Harry Potter film except the Deathly Hallows Part 1, Run Lola Run…

Advertisement

Out of 102 films on this list, using the the help of BechdelTest.com, 52 pass, 39 fail, and 12 are unknown.

Here’s the results.

1 Mulholland Drive (David Lynch, 2001) Yes

2 In the Mood for Love (Wong Kar-wai, 2000) Yes

Advertisement

3 There Will Be Blood (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2007) No

4 Spirited Away (Hayao Miyazaki, 2001)Yes

5 Boyhood (Richard Linklater, 2014)Yes

6 Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Michel Gondry, 2004 No

Advertisement

7 The Tree of Life (Terrence Malick, 2011)No

8 Yi Yi: A One and a Two (Edward Yang, 2000) Unknown

9 A Separation (Asghar Farhadi, 2011) Yes

10 Inside Llewyn Davis (Joel and Ethan Coen, 2013) No

Advertisement

11 No Country For Old Men (Joel and Ethan Coen, 2007) Yes

12 Children of Men (Alfonso Cuarón, 2006) Yes

13 Zodiac (David Fincher, 2007) No

14 The Act of Killing (Joshua Oppenheimer, 2012) Unknown

Advertisement

15 4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days (Cristian Mungiu, 2007) Yes

16 Holy Motors (Leos Carax, 2012) No

17 Pan’s Labyrinth (Guillermo Del Toro, 2006) No

18 The White Ribbon (Michael Haneke, 2009) Yes

Advertisement

19 Mad Max: Fury Road (George Miller, 2015) Yes

20 Synecdoche, New York (Charlie Kaufman, 2008)Yes

21 The Grand Budapest Hotel (Wes Anderson, 2014)No

22 Caché (Michael Haneke, 2005)Unknown

Advertisement

23 Lost in Translation (Sofia Coppola, 2003)Yes

24 The Master (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2012)No

25 Memento (Christopher Nolan, 2001) No

26 25th Hour (Spike Lee, 2002)No

Advertisement

27 The Social Network (David Fincher, 2010)No

28 Talk to Her (Pedro Almodóvar, 2002) Yes

29 WALL-E (Andrew Stanton, 2008)No

30 Oldboy (Park Chan-wook, 2003)No

Advertisement

31 Margaret (Kenneth Lonergan, 2011)Yes

32 The Lives of Others (Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, 2006)No

33 Son of Saul (László Nemes, 2015)Unknown

34 The Dark Knight (Christopher Nolan, 2008) Yes

Advertisement

35 Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Ang Lee, 2000)Yes

36 Timbuktu (Abderrahmane Sissako, 2014)Yes

37 Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2010) Yes

38 City of God (Fernando Meirelles and Kátia Lund, 2002)No

Advertisement

39 The New World (Terrence Malick, 2005)Yes

40 Brokeback Mountain (Ang Lee, 2005) No

41 Inside Out (Pete Docter and Ronnie Del Carmen, 2015)Yes

42 12 Years a Slave (Steve McQueen, 2013)Yes

Advertisement

43 Amour (Michael Haneke, 2012) Yes

44 Melancholia (Lars von Trier, 2011)Yes

45 Blue Is the Warmest Color (Abdellatif Kechiche, 2013)Yes

46 Certified Copy (Abbas Kiarostami, 2010)Yes

Advertisement

47 Leviathan (Andrey Zvyagintsev, 2014)Yes

48 Brooklyn (John Crowley, 2015) Yes

49 Goodbye to Language (Jean-Luc Godard, 2014)Unknown

50 Inception (Christopher Nolan, 2010)Yes

Advertisement

51 The Assassin (Hou Hsiao-hsien, 2015)Unknown

52 Tropical Malady (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2004) No

53 Ida (Pawel Pawlikowski, 2013)Yes

54 Moulin Rouge! (Baz Luhrmann, 2001)No

Advertisement

55 Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (Nuri Bilge Ceylan, 2011) No

56 Werckmeister Harmonies (Bela Tarr and Ágnes Hranitzky, 2000)Unknown

57 Zero Dark Thirty (Kathryn Bigelow, 2012) Yes

Advertisement

58 A History of Violence (David Cronenberg, 2005)Yes

59 Inglourious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino and Eli Roth, 2009) Yes

60 Moolaadé (Ousmane Sembene, 2004) Unknown

61 Syndromes and a Century (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2006)unknown

Advertisement

62 Under the Skin (Jonathan Glazer, 2013) No

63 Fish Tank (Andrea Arnold, 2009)Yes

64 The Great Beauty (Paolo Sorrentino, 2013) No

65 The Turin Horse (Bela Tarr and Ágnes Hranitzky, 2011)Unknown

Advertisement

66 Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter…and Spring (Kim Ki-duk, 2003)No

67 The Hurt Locker (Kathryn Bigelow, 2008)No

68 Carol (Todd Haynes, 2015)Yes

69 The Royal Tenenbaums (Wes Anderson, 2001)Yes

Advertisement
0

70 Stories We Tell (Sarah Polley, 2012)Yes

71 Tabu (Miguel Gomes, 2012)Yes

72 Before Sunset (Richard Linklater, 2004)No

73 Only Lovers Left Alive (Jim Jarmusch, 2013) Yes

Advertisement

74 Spring Breakers (Harmony Korine, 2012) Yes

75 Dogville (Lars von Trier, 2003) Yes

76 Inherent Vice (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2014)No

77 The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Julian Schnabel, 2007)No

Advertisement
1

78 Almost Famous (Cameron Crowe, 2000)Yes

79 The Return (Andrey Zvyagintsev, 2003)Unknown

80 The Wolf of Wall Street (Martin Scorsese, 2013)Yes

Advertisement

81 A Prophet (Jacques Audiard, 2009)No

82 A Serious Man (Joel and Ethan Coen, 2009)No

83 A.I. Artificial Intelligence (Steven Spielberg, 2001)No

84 Her (Spike Jonze, 2013) No

Advertisement
2

85 Shame (Steve McQueen, 2011)No

86 Amélie (Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2001)Yes

87 Far From Heaven (Todd Haynes, 2002)Yes

88 Spotlight (Tom McCarthy, 2015)No

Advertisement

89 The Headless Woman (Lucrecia Martel, 2008) Yes

90 Finding Nemo (Andrew Stanton, 2003)No

91 Let the Right One In (Tomas Alfredson, 2008)No

92 Moonrise Kingdom (Wes Anderson, 2012)Yes

Advertisement
3

93 Ratatouille (Brad Bird and Jan Pinkava, 2007)No

94 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (Andrew Dominik, 2007)No

95 The Pianist (Roman Polanski, 2002)No

96 The Secret in Their Eyes (Juan José Campanella, 2009)No

Advertisement

97 Ten (Abbas Kiarostami, 2002) Yes

98 The Gleaners and I (Agnès Varda, 2000) Yes

99 White Material (Claire Denis, 2009)Yes

100 Carlos (Olivier Assayas, 2010) Unknown

Advertisement
4

101 Requiem for a Dream (Darren Aronofsky, 2000)Yes

102 Toni Erdmann (Maren Ade, 2016) Yes

This article was originally published on The DeBrief

Related stories


Unwind and relax with your favourite magazine!

Huge savings plus FREE home delivery

Advertisement
Advertisement