Bechdel Test Movie List

/bech·del test/ n.
1. It has to have at least two [named] women in it
2. Who talk to each other
3. About something besides a man

[[3]] Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003) [imdb]

This movie passed 3 of 3 tests. It was entered by Kelly Garbato on 2009-09-17 22:10:08.

Reviews

Comments

Kelly Garbato said:
Though they center around a woman's quest for vengeance against her former mentor/lover - the titular Bill - and thus involve many instances of women conversing about a man (or what a man ordered them to do), Kill Bill Vols. 1 & 2 pass the Bechdel Test swimmingly. There are a number of examples of women talking to one another about something other than a man. In Volume 1, these include:

* When The Bride confronts Vernita Green, the two discuss what the latter did to the former at Bill's behest; Vernita mentions her daughter several times; and the the two taunt one another as they battle to the death.

* Before The Bride can confront O-Ren Ishii, she must get past O-Ren's personal bodyguard, Go Go Yubari, a young woman. The two give introductions, taunt one another as they fight, and discuss Go Go's loyalty to her "mistress."

* O-Ren and The Bride also trade insults while fighting; O-Ren admires The Bride's Hattori Hanzo sword; and before she dies, O-Ren apologizes for ridiculing The Bride earlier.

* The Bride spares the "wicked life" of Sofie Fatale, O-Ren adviser/lawyer, so that she may carry a message to Bill. We see The Bridge give Sofie the message in a brief exchange.
Message posted on 2009-09-17 22:10:08
David disagreed with the rating and said:
Technically "The Bride" is not her name.
Message posted on 2010-07-22 22:13:28
Jesi said:
Um. The Bride may not be her name, but it's not as though we don't get her name because she's a minor character. She's just an unnamed narrator, which is a perfectly valid aesthetic choice. The purpose of the "named' criteria is to make sure incredibly minor characters aren't included.
Message posted on 2010-07-30 23:22:08
Scott said:
Her name is revealed in the second installment. The movies were split up only because of length, so they should be regarded as one film (credits in the second film list actors who did not appear int he second film, which implies they are to be taken as one film. There are even plans to release a version with the two combined).
Message posted on 2010-10-02 01:55:19
Lina said:
The Bride a.k.a Belatrix Kiddo a.k.a Black Mamba a.k.a Ahrleen(or something, when she's about to marry). Though that her real name is Belatrix Kiddo might not be revealed untill the second movie. But as Scott said, you can almost count them as one movie.
Message posted on 2011-01-02 12:19:03
Ali said:
Actually The Bride's name is Beatrix Kiddo, and while we don't realise it until we see the second film, she is named in the first - before Bill shoots her he calls her 'Kiddo'.

This movie, in my opinion, passes the test.
Message posted on 2012-08-26 12:28:28
X said:
Doesn't Kiddo even introduce herself in the first installment? I think she tells her name to Vernita Green's child - "Hi, I'm..." and then the name is bleeped out. So, she is named - even though the audience only hears the full name in the second movie.
Message posted on 2012-10-08 19:24:40
The Wizard In Oz said:
Also, O-ren tells Sofie to translate for her and Vernita tells Nikki, her daughter, who is named, to go upstairs. So, even discounting the Bride (who's named onscreen anyway- it's on her plane ticket), it would still pass.
Message posted on 2012-10-10 04:07:31
Smeagle said:
Actually if you look at the rules it says NOTHING about the character having to be a NAMED character, it just states a)at least 2 women, b)they talk to each other, & c) it's about something other than a man.
Message posted on 2012-10-16 22:55:25
Kristina said:
Smeagle can you not read? The rules clearly state that the character must be named:

1. It has to have at least two [named] women in it
2. Who talk to each other
3. About something besides a man
Message posted on 2012-12-24 12:13:17
Andy said:
It says named....her character name in the first movie is the bride or her codename.

Where does it say it has to be the persons birth name?

This film passes easily.
Message posted on 2013-11-07 11:02:24
anders rullestad eriksen said:
for about half a second, when she buys the plane tickets to okinawa, you can read "beatrix kiddo" on the ticket
Message posted on 2015-05-03 21:50:34
Beth said:
The movie is a very clear pass. Even though The Bride is not explicitly named here, this is very obviously done stylistically. She is the main character, and her name is humorously bleeped out when she is introduced to Vernita's daughter Nikki. The 'named' rule was so that interactions between very minor characters did not count because those women weren't real characters essential to the narrative. (For example, Waitress #1 asking Waitress #2 to hand her a menu is not meaningful interaction and those characters are inconsequential.) For the purposes of this test, the "named" rule does not have to mean an actual name. In Kill Bill Vol. 1, she is known as The Bride, which serves as her name.

Further more, we are also told her code name, Black Mamba, which also counts as a name.

And really, she does have a name. She is Beatrix Kiddo, as we find out in Vol. 2. Since it's really one movie split into two parts, this still counts has her being named in this movie.

Lastly, there are still female interactions not involving The Bride. Vernita talks to her daughter Nikki at the start of the movie and O-Ren talks to Go Go in Japanese.
Message posted on 2015-05-26 05:28:33
Dennis said:
If after watching this movie, you thought "nope, doesn't pass the test," then you need to stop reviewing movies.
Message posted on 2016-05-20 03:19:05
Buttsforhands disagreed with the rating and said:
So, by your standards, "The Bride"'s conversation with Shu Lan Tuan's character, "Okinawa Airline Ticket Agent", also counts toward the film's passing grade?
Message posted on 2021-08-23 22:33:49
JP said:
Buttsforhands -as mentioned earlier in the thread she is named, it’s chosen stylistically to bleep it out, though it’s still onscreen in the actual film on her plane ticket. The airline attendant would be a great example of an actually unnamed character. If there were a passing interaction between let’s say two female airline attendants then it wouldn’t count. Regardless there are countless other woman to woman conversations without the topic of men being present even if you discount the bride’s role entirely. Please re evaluate.
Message posted on 2023-10-07 23:17:27
Frank Murphy disagreed with the rating and said:
Every interaction listed is to do with their relationship with their master, Bill.
Message posted on 2024-01-13 22:42:18

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