Dances with Wolves (1990 #3 Box Office and Oscar Winner)

 Bechdel-Wallace Test

1. Does the movie have at least two named female characters?
   • Yes.  There’s Stands With A Fist and Black Shawl.  There are a few other females in the Sioux tribe, but they are unnamed.
2. Do the female characters talk to each other on-screen?
   • Yes, Stands With a Fist and Black Shawl talk to each other once.
3. Does their conversation revolve around something other than a man?
   • No, their conversation is about John Dunbar (a.k.a. Dances With Wolves) and Stands’ growing relationship with him.

Ghost (1990 #2 Box Office and Oscar Nominee)

Bechdel-Wallace Test

1. Does the movie have at least two named female characters?
   • Yes.  The major ones are Molly Jensen and Oda Mae Brown.
2. Do the female characters talk to each other on-screen?
   • Yes.  There are several conversations between Molly and Oda Mae.  Oda Mae also talks to her customers and sisters, though only the customers (Rosa Santiago and Ortisha) are named.
3. Does their conversation revolve around something other than a man?
   • Yes.  While a majority of the female-female conversations involve a man (usually Sam), Oda Mae briefly discusses her spiritual “gift” with Molly, Rosa, and Ortisha individually.  The exchanges are short and quick to revert back to discussion of a man, but they pass nevertheless.

Goodfellas (1990 Oscar Nominee)

 Bechdel-Wallace Test

1. Does the movie have at least two named female characters?
   • Yes, there are several.  Some of the major female characters include Karen Hill, Janice Rossi, Rosie, Mickey, Lois Byrd, and Sandy.
2. Do the female characters talk to each other on-screen?
   • Yes, Karen talks to several of the aforementioned characters throughout the movie.  Janice also talks to Sandy.
3. Does their conversation revolve around something other than a man?
   • Yes.  At a Hostess Party, Karen and Rosie talk about where they’re originally from while Belle, Mickey, and Mrs. Carbone discuss Jeanie’s alcoholism.  In other scenes, Karen and Belle talk about her new house, and Karen and Lois coo over the baby (a girl) Lois used to smuggle drugs.

The Godfather Part III (1990 Oscar Nominee)

 To see my analysis of The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, click here.

Bechdel-Wallace Test

1. Does the movie have at least two named female characters?
   • Yes.  There’s Kay Adams Michelson, Connie Corleone Rizzi, Mary Corleone, and Grace Hamilton (among others).
2. Do the female characters talk to each other on-screen?
   • Yes, Mary, Kay, and Connie talk to each other at different intervals.
3. Does their conversation revolve around something other than a man?
   • Yes.  Mary greets her mother, Kay, at the train station, and they briefly discuss an opera poster Mary brought along.  A very short conversation that eventually segues into talk of Anthony and other male characters, but this portion counts nevertheless.

Awakenings (1990 Oscar Nominee)

 Bechdel-Wallace Test

1. Does the movie have at least two named female characters?
   • Yes, there’s Eleanor Costello, Mrs. Lowe, Paula, Lucy, and Rose, to name a few.
2. Do the female characters talk to each other on-screen?
   • Yes, Eleanor talks to the other nurses, and the nurses often talk to the female patients.
3. Does their conversation revolve around something other than a man?
   • Yes.  At one point, Rose and Nurse Margaret discuss the former’s hair color and appearance.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990 #5 Box Office)

 Bechdel-Wallace Test

1. Does the movie have at least two named female characters?
   • Yes.  There’s April O’Neil, June, and Tang Shen.
2. Do the female characters talk to each other on-screen?
   • Yes, April talks to June.
3. Does their conversation revolve around something other than a man?
   • Yes.  April and June talk about the Foot Clan and its relationship to the recent crime wave.  June asks if the police are involved, but doesn’t name any men in particular.  April responds that she doubts Chief Sterns is taking it seriously.  So while the conversation includes mentions of Chief Sterns and , later, Raphael, the main point of the conversation is the Foot Clan and April’s mugging.  It passes, but that decision is dubious based on how you interpret the conversation.
   • If you disagree with this assessment, please post why in the comments below.  Even now, I’m still on the fence on whether this movie truly passes or not.

Pretty Woman (1990 #4 Box Office)

 Bechdel-Wallace Test

1. Does the movie have at least two named female characters?
   • Yes.  There’s Vivian Ward, Kit De Luca, Rachel, Bridget, and Elizabeth Stuckey.
2. Do the female characters talk to each other on-screen?
   • Yes.  Vivian has several conversations with Kit.  Kit also talks to Rachel.
3. Does their conversation revolve around something other than a man?
   • Yes.  On multiple occasions, Vivian and Kit talk about the rent money, Vivian’s appearance, and their respective futures.

Home Alone (1990 #1 Box Office)

 Bechdel-Wallace Test

1. Does the movie have at least two named female characters?
   • Yes, and almost all of them are part of the McCallister family: Kate, Megan, Linnie, Heather, Brooke, and Aunt Leslie.  Outside of the family is Rose.
2. Do the female characters talk to each other on-screen?
   • Yes, Kate has multiple conversations with most of the women listed above.
3. Does their conversation revolve around something other than a man?
   • Yes.  Kate asks Heather if she counted everyone before they leave for the airport, and Heather responds in the affirmative.  Her saucy listing of everyone includes the mention of “five boys”, but the conversation is ultimately about the travel group in general rather than a specific male.