Bechdel Test Movie List

This is another movie with mostly men speaking with other men, but it passes the test thanks to at least one scene. Mary Todd Lincoln (Sally Field) discusses [things other than men] with Elizabeth Keckley (Gloria Reuben).

I just discovered the rating system and noticed the positive rating for Lincoln before I went to see it. However, the only actual conversation I saw depicted between Mary and Mrs. Keckley was a brief comment on Rep. Stevens's speech in the House. Mrs. Lincoln says she never thought to see Stevens compromise, and Mrs. Keckley, who is upset by the compromise, excuses herself and leaves. Certainly many conversations between the two women are implied, but this is the only one we get to hear, and the only real comment is about a man. So I would give it 2 out of 3. That said, this is very much a movie about dead white males, and most of the characters, including the women, are shown interacting with Lincoln rather than with each other.

The moment you refer to is not a conversation. And a conversation between these two women would have been a genuine contribution to the film. Elizabeth Keckley, in addition to being a successful dress designer, was also a Union army recruiter and a fundraiser for aid to black soldiers and former slaves. As Mary Todd Lincoln's closest confidant, She was possibly the only significant black presence in the White House at the time. And even a one-minute conversation with Mary Todd about the sons they had both lost would have improved the movie. But the passing comments cited above do not pass the test.

I still don't see that as a proper "conversation". I'd pin it down to an "exchange" - and a quick one at that. The film is deeply rooted in patriarchal ideologies. I'd give it 2/3.