Bechdel Test Movie List

Arguably the greatest zombie film of all time, the original "Dawn of the Dead" fails the Bechdel test miserably. It has lots of female characters; however, only one of them is named (Fran). The rest are either zombies, about to become zombies, or biker chicks, and are non-speaking characters. It must be noted, however, that most of the female zombies moan, but so do most of the male ones.

I think this rating is extremely harsh. The opening scene with dialogue is between two women not discussing a man. Admittedly, one of the women (Fran) is not at that stage named and the other female character is neither named nor features again. However, there are numerous verbal exchanges between women on subjects other than men. On that basis, to award no stars is, in my view, a tad unfair.

First of all the movie has four named characters, period (actually there are a few other minor characters for whom we overheard names, but outside of the principle four there's almost no supporting cast). Fran DOES talk with another woman and it's NOT about a man. However I think this movie proves an issue with the test as it's a profoundly feminist movie. Fran proves to be the most level headed and strong of the group perhaps aside from Peter, although Peter is certainly more reckless. She also proves just as useful as her male counterparts, and again is probably the most useful aside Peter. Roger ends up having a mental breakdown, and Peter is depicted as inept and self centered. Fran shares none of these traits

i agree with one of the posters that this is a profoundly feminist movie that happens to follow the exploits of only four characters period. as fran points out to her male co-stars: "i'm not your den mother." fran does not require a man, is not dependent on men, and recognizes what she needs to learn in order to survive in the world, and she demands these things. in fact***spoilers***at the movies end, she is on the verge of setting off into the world alone. i think the bechdel test is a wonderful tool, but dawn of the dead is a reminder that not everything fits into it.