The Mako Mori Test: a Bechdel Test alternative (Page 1 of 2)

*shrug*

I like it. At least as a piece of language technology.

As the article itself says, the Bechdel test is often misapplied, or applied too strictly.  Gravity has only one female character and so it "fails" the first part of the test - but there are only TWO characters in the entire movie.  That's a very different circumstance than your average Transformers flick, with twenty male speaking parts and one female for eye candy and rescue purposes.   And even though Gravity "fails" the test, it's otherwise a rare example of a movie with a fully-drawn female character who drives the story.

The "Mori test" is just a similar concept - it accepts that there aren't a lot of female leads in movies - so if there IS one, is she at least a character and not just "the girl"? 

As I've said before, the Bechdel Test is like a doctor taking a temperature - an anomalous reading doesn't automatically mean there's a problem, but it's an easy and quick way to check if there might be one.  Might be a minor problem, might be serious - for that you have to look deeper.    Saving Private Ryan doesn't pass the Bechdel Test OR the Mori test, but that's not really a problem, considering what the movie's about.

Really, both "tests" are about the same thing - is/are the female characters in this movie actual characters, or just there so the boys have something to ogle?   Which is a perfectly valid question to ask, always.

This is really interesting. I really like it. It's kind of like what we were talking about on the Brave thread for why Mulan works so well. She's sort of in a Gravity situation in that she's about the only lady around, but that's the whole point of the narrative, so you can't just change it and tell the same story. Yeah, I'm glad this idea has a name finally.

Also, it helps me phrase in my own mind why certain movies like (brace yourselves) The Prestige, The Dark Knight, Braveheart, and even parts of LOTR don't work for me. The girl is just "the girl" and if she can't have the guy or if the guy can't have her then she ceases to be important and often dies. Many times she goes away so that the guy can achieve his full potential in his chosen career, which isn't such a terrible story once, but if it happens over and over again it becomes tedious. This "the girl" thing creates an emotional barrier for me from the movie to where I just can't relate to it.

Interestingly, one of the most dude-centric, artsy, important movies of the last five years that happens to be about a male-dominated industry (and was created by one, too) passes this test just fine: The Social Network.

It does make me wonder, though, if there's a similar type of test for Chick Flicks. I feel like movies where the guy is more than a prize and has an arc tend to be stronger. Like Sleepless in Seattle, Breakfast at Tiffany's and When Harry Met Sally. Those seem to stand the test of time better. ... And that was me advocating for more "strong male characters" of all things. Or maybe the general definition of a "Chick Flick" is just a movie featuring women that lacks a male arc. I dunno.

See my rant about Christopher Nolan's female characters from last year.

I'm not sure Bechdel would let Gravity off the hook. Bullock plays a pretty weak character.

It's not like it's impossible to write interesting women. Movies from the studio era generally did a far better job of it than movies do today.

It's really a shame to watch something like National Treasure and see a woman who has one clue to give, then just follows the hero around second guessing him for the rest of the movie.

Say what you will about anime, but their desire to have a female character for every fetish often means you end up with a number of good ones almost by accident. The difference between the gender ratio of an action anime and an action movie is striking.

long-ass image Show

SMBC gets it.

No, Brody's a scaredy-cat Police Chief which is totally cool and heroic.     

Tongue out of cheek now - Bullock isn't an astronaut, she's a payload specialist who had just enough training to get her up there and back.  Clooney's the astronaut.   Bullock's barely hanging on when the mission is still going well.   This isn't unprecedented even in real life, at least not for those of us who remember Barfin' Jake Garn.   

Now, the question of how she's a medical doctor who somehow is a payload specialist installing gizmos on the Hubble - now there I also scratch my head. 

Not that either of us is likely to have this problem anytime soon, but I totally would.

The interesting thing is that the entire discussion of whether Bullock in Gravity is a good role model, or well-written or acted, etc, isn't even within the scope of the Bechdel test.   

Bechdel was pointing out how few women are in movies at all, and how few of those only exist as appendages to the male characters.  The fact that we can even have a debate about whether Sandy's character is weak or strong is a relative luxury.  The shocker is that there's a character like that in a movie to begin with.

And even the "bad guy" is female!

This infographic applies both tests to the movies of 2012
It is interesting to look at it visually and think of them in terms of what has been said about them on the podcast and in the forums.

p.s. Wow 2012 was a rich harvest in terms of movies and the podcast.

Hey, rules are rules.   Chimpanzees are clearly supporting the patriarchy.

And Zira was the only female.