Fails the Bechdel test
Donnie Brasco
1997. Directed by Mike Newell, written by Joseph D. Pistone and Richard Woodley and Paul Attanasio.
The Bechdel test
Bechdel score
2 / 3
Fails
-
Yes
1. At least two women
15 women characters. 1 of them speak. -
Yes
2. Who talk to each other
Women do talk to each other. -
No
3. About something besides a man
Every conversation between women that our parser found mentions a man.
Second opinion
Agree bechdeltest.com readers give it 1 out of 3.
The film
This true story follows FBI agent Joe Pistone as he infiltrates the New York Mafia. Befriending Lefty Ruggiero, Pistone (under the name Donnie Brasco) is able to embed himself in a Mafia faction led by Sonny Black. Ruggiero and Pistone become tight as the group goes about collecting money for "the bosses." Eventually, the group become big-time when Black himself becomes a boss; all the while, Pistone collects evidence. However, the trials and tribulations of the undercover work become more than Pistone can bear. His marriage falls apart, and to top it off, the Mafia suspect a mole in the organization. The real dilemma is afforded to Pistone, who knows that if he walks away from the Mafia, Ruggiero will be the one punished.
- Released
- 28 Feb 1997
- Genres
- Biography, Crime, Drama
- Rated
- R
- IMDb
- 7.7 / 10
- Metascore
- 77 / 100
- Awards
- Nominated for 1 Oscar. 2 wins & 16 nominations total
- Elsewhere
- View on IMDb
Starring, by lines spoken
- Women
- Men
- Not in the cast list
- Bigger name, more lines
- Donnie 295 lines, man
- Lefty 234 lines, man
- Maggie 94 lines, woman
- Sonny 76 lines, man
- Nicky 53 lines, man
- Jules 44 lines
- Berada 35 lines, man
- Boobie 33 lines, man
- Hogue 33 lines, man
- Lebow 31 lines
Full cast, 66 people
- Johnny Depp as Donnie Brasco / Joseph D. 'Joe' Pistone
- Al Pacino as Benjamin 'Lefty' Ruggiero
- Michael Madsen as Dominick 'Sonny Black' Napolitano
- Bruno Kirby as Nicholas 'Nicky' Santora
- James Russo as Paulie
- Anne Heche as Maggie Pistone
- Željko Ivanek as Tim Curley
- Brian Tarantina as Bruno
- Rocco Sisto as Richard 'Richie' Gazzo
- Zach Grenier as Dr. Berger
- Gerry Becker as Agent Dean Blandford FBI
- Robert Miano as Alphonse 'Sonny Red' Indelicato
- Paul Giamatti as FBI Technician
- Gretchen Mol as Sonny's Girlfriend
- Tim Blake Nelson as FBI Technician
- Walt MacPherson as Sheriff
- Ronnie Farer as Annette
- Terry Serpico as Strip Club Owner
- Tony Lip as Philip 'Philly Lucky' Giaccone
- George Angelica as Big Trin
- Val Avery as Santo Trafficante Jr.
- Madison Arnold as Jilly
- Delanie Fitzpatrick as Daughter
- Katie Sagona as Daughter
- Sara Gold as Daughter
- Larry Romano as Tommy
- James McCauley as FBI Agent
- James Bulleit as U.S. Attorney
- Andrew Parks as Hollman
- Keenan Shimizu as Japanese Maitre D'
- Rocco Musacchia as Trafficante's Man
- Joe Francis as Trafficante's Man
- Sal Jenco as Mare Chiaro Bartender
- Billy Capucilli as Communion Party Man
- Laura Cahill as Communion Party Woman
- Doreen Murphy as Mob Girlfriend
- Denise Faye as Mob Girlfriend
- Elaine Del Valle as Mob Girlfriend
- John Horton as FBI Director
- Dan Brennan as FBI Photographer
- LaJuan Carter as Singer
- Sandy Barber as Singer
- Joyce Stovall as Singer
- Frank Pesce as Wiseguy
- Randy Jurgensen as Wiseguy
- John Di Benedetto as Wiseguy
- Richard Zavaglia as Wiseguy
- Tony Ray Rossi as Wiseguy
- Edward Black as Wiseguy
- Gaetano LoGiudice as Wiseguy
- Carmelo Musacchia as Wiseguy
- Pat Vecchio as Wiseguy
- Caleb as The Lion
- Flint Beverage as Kings Court Cop (uncredited)
- Frank Bonsangue as Sonny Red's Crew (uncredited)
- Mark Todd Bruner as FBI Agent (uncredited)
- Teresa Giudice as Shocked Stripper (uncredited)
- Barry Hirschberg as Background (uncredited)
- Jim Lavin as Arresting FBI Officer (uncredited)
- Peter O'Hara as Passerby (uncredited)
- Antone Pagán as Prison Guard for Pacino and Depp (uncredited)
- Garry Pastore as Carmine Galante's Bodyguard
- Dale Resteghini as Strip Club Patron (uncredited)
- Larry Tobias as Man in Bar (uncredited)
- Elle Alexander as Mob Girlfriend
- Frankie Cee as Civilian (uncredited)
Who talks, scene by scene
Lines of dialogue in every 3 scenes, start to finish. Women above the line, men below. 15% of lines come from characters we couldn't match to the cast list and aren't shown.
Women
Men
Scene 1 Scene 115
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 | 9 |
| 4 to 6 | 14 | 41 |
| 7 to 9 | 0 | 56 |
| 10 to 12 | 8 | 3 |
| 13 to 15 | 1 | 1 |
| 16 to 18 | 0 | 30 |
| 19 to 21 | 0 | 22 |
| 22 to 24 | 2 | 43 |
| 25 to 27 | 0 | 3 |
| 28 to 30 | 18 | 45 |
| 31 to 33 | 0 | 20 |
| 34 to 36 | 0 | 16 |
| 37 to 39 | 0 | 10 |
| 40 to 42 | 2 | 29 |
| 43 to 45 | 28 | 30 |
| 46 to 48 | 2 | 5 |
| 49 to 51 | 1 | 1 |
| 52 to 54 | 0 | 20 |
| 55 to 57 | 0 | 16 |
| 58 to 60 | 0 | 35 |
| 61 to 63 | 5 | 44 |
| 64 to 66 | 0 | 55 |
| 67 to 69 | 12 | 43 |
| 70 to 72 | 8 | 26 |
| 73 to 75 | 0 | 48 |
| 76 to 78 | 2 | 2 |
| 79 to 81 | 0 | 17 |
| 82 to 84 | 0 | 16 |
| 85 to 87 | 0 | 10 |
| 88 to 90 | 0 | 7 |
| 91 to 93 | 0 | 20 |
| 94 to 96 | 0 | 18 |
| 97 to 99 | 10 | 18 |
| 100 to 102 | 2 | 7 |
| 103 to 105 | 1 | 6 |
| 106 to 108 | 9 | 13 |
| 109 to 111 | 2 | 55 |
| 112 to 114 | 1 | 16 |
| 115 to 115 | 0 | 0 |
The evidence
- Straight from the script
- Counted from the script and the credits
Tap an exhibit to open it.
Exhibit A: every 100 lines
Out of every 100 lines with a known speaker, 13 are women's.
128 lines from women, 856 from men.
- Women
- Men
Exhibit B: who's in it
15 women and 51 men in the cast. 1 women and 21 men from it get lines.
Characters
With lines
- Women
- Men
Exhibit C: who gets heard
The first woman speaks at line 60 of 1,164.
The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 120 lines.
Every line of dialogue, first to last
- First line by a woman
- Longest stretch with no woman speaking
Words spoken
Women speak 13% of the words (1,616), men 87% (10,538).
Exhibit D: 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
2
Two men
64
Exhibit E: behind the camera
2 of the 16 people in these jobs are women.
Across the whole crew, 13% of the people whose gender is listed are women.
- Directed by
- Mike Newell (man)
- Written by
- Paul Attanasio (man)
- From the novel by
- Richard Woodley (man), Joseph D. Pistone (man)
- Produced by
- Louis DiGiaimo (man), Gail Mutrux (woman), Mark Johnson (man), Barry Levinson (man)
- Shot by
- Peter Sova (man)
- Edited by
- Jon Gregory (man)
- Music by
- Patrick Doyle (man)
- Production design by
- Donald Graham Burt (man)
- Costumes by
- David C. Robinson (man), Aude Bronson-Howard (woman)
- Cast by
- Brett Goldstein (man), Louis DiGiaimo (man)
The crew, department by department
-
Production
1 women, 7 men
-
Costume & Make-Up
1 women, 2 men, 3 not listed
-
Art
1 women, 2 men
-
Writing
0 women, 3 men
-
Directing
0 women, 2 men
-
Camera
0 women, 1 men
-
Other crew
0 women, 1 men
-
Editing
0 women, 1 men
- Women
- Men
- Gender not listed on TMDB
Exhibit F: how old the stars were
Women: 27 on average. Men: 42 on average.
The top-billed cast, at the film's release.
Women
Anne Heche 27
Men
Johnny Depp 33, Brian Tarantina 37, Michael Madsen 39, Željko Ivanek 39, James Russo 43, Zach Grenier 43, Rocco Sisto 44, Bruno Kirby 47, Al Pacino 56
Exhibit G: the money
It made 3.6 times what it cost.
- Budget
- $35 million
- Box office
- $125 million
From TMDB, not adjusted for inflation.
About this analysis
Our parser read the script: 115 scenes and 1,164 lines of dialogue. The bechdeltest.com rating comes from that site’s readers. How the test works
