Passes the Bechdel test

Captain Fantastic

Name: Captain Fantastic
Released: 2016

2016. Directed by Matt Ross, written by Matt Ross.

The Bechdel test

Bechdel score

3 / 3

Passes

Yes 1. At least two women
9 women characters. 10 of them speak.
Yes 2. Who talk to each other
In 13 scenes out of 135.
Yes 3. About something besides a man
In those scenes, our script parser found no man named. See the scene.

Second opinion

Agree bechdeltest.com readers give it 3 out of 3, though someone marked that rating as dubious.

The film

Ben and Leslie Cash live largely off the grid with their offspring -- Bodevan, Kielyr, Vespyr, Rellian, Zaja and Nai -- in a cabin in the mountains of Washington state. The parents have passed their socialist and survivalist ideals to their children. Ben considers most of Western society to be fascist, especially corporate America. He also believes that no one will or should be there for you, so you'd better learn how to take care of yourself. As such, the children have been subject to vigorous physical training; know how to deal with minor bumps, bruises, cuts, sprains, and even fractures; and know how to hunt, forage, and grow their own food. The children are also non-registered home schooled, meaning that they have no official academic records. Ben and Leslie have tried to make the children critical thinkers, however, within the context of their ideals. Beyond these issues, Ben and Leslie made the decision to live this lifestyle for Leslie's health. Formerly an attorney, Leslie was diagnosed as bipolar. Ben believes that this disorder started with her postpartum depression with Bo. Yet Leslie's condition has worsened. Despite not believing in Western medicine, Ben sends Leslie to a hospital close to Ben's sister, Harper, so that there can be family close by. While hospitalized, Leslie commits suicide. Beyond the collective grief, Leslie's act brings out a battle between Ben and Leslie's father, Jack Bertrang, a Christian who not only blames Ben for Leslie's death, but believes that what he is doing "to" the children can legally be considered abuse. Jack takes over the funeral arrangements as per his and his complacent wife Abby's Christian morals, against what Ben knows was Leslie's wishes, as she believed in Buddhist philosophies. Although Jack threatens to call the police if Ben shows up to the funeral, Ben and the children believe it is their mission to honor Leslie's last wishes to be cremated as per Buddhist philosophy. This mission not only may bring the divide between Jack and Ben to a head, but may also bring out some long dormant issues between the Cash children as they are exposed to commercial America in all its good and bad, and as Bo grows into manhood, he may have his own ideas of what he should do with the next phase of his life.

Released: 29 Jul 2016
Genres: Adventure, Comedy, Drama
Rated: R
IMDb: 7.8 / 10
Metascore: 72 / 100
Awards: Nominated for 1 Oscar. 15 wins & 51 nominations total
Elsewhere: View on IMDb

Starring, by lines spoken

Women
Men
Not in the cast list
Bigger name, more lines

Ben 322 lines, man
Bodevan 76 lines, man
Nai 60 lines, man
Jack 56 lines, man
Rellian 54 lines, man
Zaja 45 lines, woman
Vespyr 43 lines, woman
Harper 42 lines, woman
Kielyr 42 lines, woman
Claire 24 lines, woman

Full cast, 28 people

Viggo Mortensen as Ben Cash
George MacKay as Bodevan Cash
Samantha Isler as Kielyr Cash
Annalise Basso as Vespyr Cash
Nicholas Hamilton as Rellian Cash
Shree Crooks as Zaja Cash
Charlie Shotwell as Nai Cash
Trin Miller as Leslie Abigail Cash
Frank Langella as Jack Bertrang
Ann Dowd as Abigail Bertrang
Steve Zahn as Dave
Kathryn Hahn as Harper
Elijah Stevenson as Justin
Teddy Van Ee as Jackson
Erin Moriarty as Claire McCune
Missi Pyle as Ellen
Galen Osier as Small Store Owner
Hannah Horton as Teenage Girl
Rex Young as Officer Skadden
Thomas Brophy as Grocery Store Manager
Mike Miller as Priest
Greg Crooks as Funeral Usher
Louis Hobson as Doctor
Elena Stecca as Diner Patron (uncredited)
Paul Alan Amend as Pallbearer (uncredited)
Hafid Abdelmoula as Funeral Driver (uncredited)
Richard Beal as Funeral Mourner (uncredited)
Alan Humphrey as Funeral Mourner (uncredited)

Who talks, scene by scene

Lines of dialogue in every 3 scenes, start to finish. Women above the line, men below. 2% of lines come from characters we couldn't match to the cast list and aren't shown.

Women

Men

Scene 1 Scene 135

Hover, tap or tab to a bar to see those scenes: where they happen and who's talking.

Show the numbers

Scenes	Women's lines	Men's lines
1 to 3	0	1
4 to 6	4	7
7 to 9	14	19
10 to 12	2	7
13 to 15	4	5
16 to 18	1	5
19 to 21	3	15
22 to 24	12	29
25 to 27	10	30
28 to 30	0	4
31 to 33	2	0
34 to 36	8	22
37 to 39	7	26
40 to 42	8	11
43 to 45	9	22
46 to 48	0	2
49 to 51	11	29
52 to 54	0	4
55 to 57	22	49
58 to 60	22	47
61 to 63	0	0
64 to 66	19	21
67 to 69	16	14
70 to 72	0	3
73 to 75	0	1
76 to 78	0	8
79 to 81	2	23
82 to 84	6	19
85 to 87	2	27
88 to 90	3	46
91 to 93	5	4
94 to 96	0	0
97 to 99	0	2
100 to 102	6	9
103 to 105	7	24
106 to 108	3	24
109 to 111	0	10
112 to 114	0	0
115 to 117	3	12
118 to 120	3	1
121 to 123	0	0
124 to 126	0	0
127 to 129	3	6
130 to 132	4	30
133 to 135	5	2

The evidence

Straight from the script
Counted from the script and the credits

Tap an exhibit to open it.

Exhibit A: the passing scenes

The scene our parser counted as passing, word for word.

VESPYR: But you said hospitals are only a great place to go to if you're a healthy person and you want to die. ZAJA: You said Americans are undereducated and overmedicated. KIELYR: You said that the AMA are avaricious whores only too willing to spread their fat legs for Big Pharma.

VESPYR: We're strong. We're ready. KIELYR: We are defined by our actions, not by our words.

VESPYR KIELYR: Give us the Mission! The Mission! ZAJA: We want the Mission!

VESPYR: Except Christians. ZAJA: Yeah, we don't make fun of people. Except Christians.

VESPYR: Mankas al mi Panjo. KIELYR: Mi deziras ke Panjo povus reveni hejmen guste nun.

Exhibit B: every 100 lines

Out of every 100 lines with a known speaker, 27 are women's.

226 lines from women, 620 from men.

Women
Men

Exhibit C: who's in it

9 women and 12 men in the cast. 10 women and 10 men from it get lines.

Characters

With lines

Women
Men

Exhibit D: who gets heard

The first woman speaks at line 3 of 862. The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 44 lines.

Every line of dialogue, first to last

First line by a woman
Longest stretch with no woman speaking

Words spoken

Women speak 24% of the words (1,970), men 76% (6,166). Women have 27% of the lines, so their lines run shorter than men's.

Exhibit E: the test the other way

Two named men talk to each other about something besides a woman. It passes the reverse test.

Conversations between two named characters

Two women

Two men

Exhibit F: behind the camera

5 of the 12 people in these jobs are women. Across the whole crew, 33% of the people whose gender is listed are women.

Directed by: Matt Ross (man)
Written by: Matt Ross (man)
Produced by: Shivani Rawat (woman), Lynette Howell Taylor (woman), Jamie Patricof (man), Monica Levinson (woman)
Shot by: Stéphane Fontaine (man)
Edited by: Joseph Krings (man)
Music by: Alex Somers (man)
Production design by: Russell Barnes (man)
Costumes by: Courtney Hoffman (woman)
Cast by: Jeanne McCarthy (woman)