Bechdel Movie Test Analysis

This project examines the Bechdel test results for popular movies over time and analyzes trends in gender representation in cinema.

The Bechdel test asks whether a work of fiction features at least two women who talk to each other about something other than a man. While simple, it provides an interesting lens to examine gender representation.

Key Findings

• The percentage of movies passing the Bechdel test has increased from 27% in the 1970s to 58% in the 2020s
• Genre significantly impacts pass rates, with romance and drama having higher pass rates than action and sci-fi
• Movies that pass the test have shown increasing box office success over time relative to those that don't

Methodology

I used data from the Bechdel Test Movie List database combined with box office information from IMDB. Analysis was performed using R with ggplot2 for visualization.