Bechdel Test Movie List

While I don't remember Ruffnuff and Astrid having a full-fledged conversation, I'm pretty sure they talk to each other (although the moment I can remember is Astrid being unhappy of Ruffnuff's interest in Hiccup. Therefor it would be about a man.)

At the very least, HTTYD has very cool kick-ass girls and women.

Although there is progress in how a young woman is represented from, say, early Disney, Astrid is obviously and throughout the movie intended to be the reward for Hiccup once he finally comes of age. He even says in the beginning that if he can only become successful, he'll get a girlfriend. She's the prize to be won; a cool, edgier, stronger prize than others, but still an object to his subject.

That's not entirely fair. The movie starts out that way, but it starts out with a lot of preconceptions that are shown to be wrong. I would say that Astrid's place in Hiccup's eyes changes significantly as he actually gets to know her instead of admiring her from afar.

Astrid and Ruffnut talk during the denouement when they are working out how best to fight the Red Death on dragonback.
It may not be much, but it's there. This is a great movie, as it shows a variety of female body types (Astrid is taller than Hiccup) and roles, as well as showing positive role models of disability, and an emphasis on peaceful solutions to conflict.

Ruffnuff says something about how she hopes to get a burn on her shoulder or lower back (tattoo joke)and Astrid says back "yeah it's only fun if you get a scar" when they're going into dragon training.

Time to give HTTYD a smiley face, based on the two previous posts.

Okay, based on the feedback I've updated the rating (from 1/3 to 3/3).

It does pass the test, but consider this: the original book series the movie is adapted from contains no character named Astrid; the equivalent in the book is in fact male. The female character for the film was created solely for the purpose of the romantic subplot. Even more bothersome is the fact that she's rough, tough, mean-spirited, and generally unlikeable until the "magic carpet ride." Doesn't give much legitimacy to the character as much more than the reward, as mentioned.

I agree with Comrade Svilova. Astrid is obviously still an object as much as they try to mask that fact through 'positive discrimination' by making her tough and seemingly unapproachable.

I agree with the rating because there are lots of women in this movie and they never talk about boys.

On the subject of Astrid being seen as "the prize", an object... This seems to be true, but as Danno points out, this changes during the movie. Not to mention, Hiccup apparently feels like he is worth less as a man for not having a girlfriend, which makes him want one just for the sake of it (to begin with anyway)... This makes me think. They're kinda making a point about how sexist society can be- Hiccup feels society says you need a woman as a prize, and on the other hand society is being pretty sexist against men too- saying that a man is not a "real man" if he doesn't have a girl. I mean, it gives the impression that we've got prejudice in both directions here. Especially taking into account the fact that the female characters (even though there aren't that many of them) are counted as completely equal to the male ones- hell, Astrid is depicted as the most proficient fighter out of all of them. And as the story progresses, I'm getting the feeling of the main character overcoming the "need girl as prize" idea... This movie seems to be saying the concept is archaic and is not the right way to think.

Maybe I'm over-thinking this, but I reckon this movie's pretty good when it come to female roles. It's only fault is that it could have had more female characters in it.

While I liked the movie well enough, I found it irksome that although Astrid was built up to be the most proficient of the fighters, she didn't really get to prove it. It seemed like the only thing of note she did was serve as Hiccup's emotional rallier and confidante. She's even taken out of the final battle by being rescued by Hiccup.

However it was refreshing to also see a few women standing amongst the men who were warriors.