# Name your favourite movie - but it has to pass the test! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 15, 2012, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favourite-movie-but-it-has-to-pass-the-test/612880 "2012-02-15T02:14:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Ashley\_Pomeroy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c68b51/32.png) [@Ashley\_Pomeroy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashley_Pomeroy)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2012, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favourite-movie-but-it-has-to-pass-the-test/612880/161 "2012-03-12T19:36:00Z")
> [@Arnold\_Winkelried](#): > > Short version: > [ol] > [li]The movie has to have at least two women in it[/li][li]Who talk to each other[/li][li]About something besides a man.[/li][/ol] I’d have to pick _Where Eagles Dare_, which isn’t my favourite film, but it’s very close to the top. Admittedly the two heroines have to disguise themselves as barmaids, but they’re shown to be resourceful, tough, and very good shots with their infinitely-reloading machine guns. There’s at least one scene where Ingrid Pitt’s character gives Mary Ure’s character a top secret five-seconds-to-self-destruct type briefing about the disguise she’s going to use to infiltrate the castle. No men are mentioned. It’s very brief, though (I’m going from memory and a subtitles file here - Burton briefs Ure, who then briefs Pitt). So, from 1968, Alistair MacLean’s proto-feminist masterpiece. Not sure if it really stands up to a feminist reading though; it’s about a bunch of mostly men who penetrate a castle (obviously a feminine symbol) in order to rescue a man - and some stuff about spies and notebooks - and then they set fire to it and escape. It’s full of men going into things, and going out of them. ---
**Author:** ![Esox\_Lucius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/848f3c/32.png) [@Esox\_Lucius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esox_Lucius)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favourite-movie-but-it-has-to-pass-the-test/612880/162 "2012-03-13T05:18:16Z")
Terms of Endearment was the first to pop into my mind. The whole movie is centered around the relationship between Shirley MacLaine and Deborah Winger as her daughter (which was beautifully tipped off in the opening scene when the daughter’s character is still a baby in the crib). Even Jack Nicholson only rates a secondary role. From head to toe, that movie was exquisitely written. The movie that had the biggest impact on me, though, was 2001: A Space Odyssey, and that flunks the Bechdel test spectacularly. ---
**Author:** ![Art\_Rock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/art_rock/32/525_2.png) [@Art\_Rock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Art_Rock)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favourite-movie-but-it-has-to-pass-the-test/612880/163 "2012-03-13T07:58:46Z")
\*\*A fish called Wanda \*\*for me. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Umbrella](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Mister\_Umbrella](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Umbrella)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favourite-movie-but-it-has-to-pass-the-test/612880/164 "2012-03-13T08:25:26Z")
Children of Men Death Proof Aliens Pan’s Labyrinth Last Unicorn Sister Act Sister Act II A bunch of my favorites ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favourite-movie-but-it-has-to-pass-the-test/612880/165 "2012-03-13T13:34:25Z")
Disney’s _Sleeping Beauty_ is another movie that passes this test. The three fairies, Flora, Fauna and Merriweather frequently talk with each other about Malificent or Aurora/Briar Rose. Disney’s _Cinderella_ also passes. The stepmother (who is named Lady Tremaine, we learn at the ball), Anastasia and Drizella (the stepsisters) and Cinderella talk (or sometimes screech) about a number of things besides the prince. ---
**Author:** ![johnspartan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a183cd/32.png) [@johnspartan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnspartan)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2012, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favourite-movie-but-it-has-to-pass-the-test/612880/166 "2012-03-15T19:55:07Z")
The animated version of Anastasia, which I really enjoy, has Anastasia carrying on several conversation with women that don’t involve a relationship with a man. At the beginning there’s the one with the lady running the orphanage, then at the end there’s the convo with the dowager empress. Plus Sophie has some convos with the dowager empress too. Now, ultimately the dowager and Anastasia DO end up talking about the guy, but that’s even a small part of _that_ chat. ---
**Author:** ![MacCat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maccat/32/216_2.png) [@MacCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacCat)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2012, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favourite-movie-but-it-has-to-pass-the-test/612880/167 "2012-03-16T02:24:13Z")
Of the four that came immediately to mind, two were mentioned by previous posters – **On Golden Pond** and **Fried Green Tomatoes**. The other two I didn’t see mentioned are **Moonstruck** and **Hannah And Her Sisters**. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2012, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favourite-movie-but-it-has-to-pass-the-test/612880/168 "2012-03-16T02:40:42Z")
[Boogie Nights.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfNmSpptyjc) ---
**Author:** ![RomeoAndRosaline](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e36b37/32.png) [@RomeoAndRosaline](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RomeoAndRosaline)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2012, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favourite-movie-but-it-has-to-pass-the-test/612880/169 "2012-03-16T02:46:53Z")
Harold and Maude apparently passes. Off the top of my head I couldn’t think of any conversations in it but I could barely think of any where a character talks to anyone who isn’t Harold. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-your-favourite-movie-but-it-has-to-pass-the-test/612880.md?page=8)