Passes the Bechdel test
Girl with a Pearl Earring
2004. Directed by Peter Webber, written by Tracy Chevalier and Olivia Hetreed.
The Bechdel test
Bechdel score
3 / 3
Passes
-
Yes
1. At least two women
9 women characters. 6 of them speak. -
Yes
2. Who talk to each other
In 9 scenes out of 151. -
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.
The film
This film, adapted from a work of fiction by author Tracy Chevalier, tells a story about the events surrounding the creation of the painting "Girl With a Pearl Earring" by 17th century Dutch master Johannes Vermeer. Little is known about the girl in the painting, it is speculated that she was a maid who lived in the house of the painter along with his family and other servants, though there is no historical evidence. This masterful film attempts to recreate the mysterious girl's life. Griet, played by Scarlett Johansson, is a maid in the house of painter Johannes Vermeer, played by British actor Colin Firth. Vermeer's wealthy patron and sole means of support, Van Ruijven, commissions him to paint Griet with the intent that he will have her for himself before it is finished. She must somehow secretly pose for the crucial painting without the knowledge of Vermeer's wife, avoid Van Ruijven's grasp, and protect herself from the cruel gossip of the world of a 17th century servant.
- Released
- 30 Jan 2004
- Genres
- Biography, Drama, Romance
- Rated
- PG-13
- IMDb
- 6.9 / 10
- Metascore
- 72 / 100
- Awards
- Nominated for 3 Oscars. 19 wins & 46 nominations total
- Elsewhere
- View on IMDb
Starring, by lines spoken
- Women
- Men
- Not in the cast list
- Bigger name, more lines
- Vermeer 118 lines, man
- Griet 107 lines, woman
- Catharina 77 lines, woman
- Van Ruijven 64 lines, man
- Tanneke 48 lines, woman
- Maria Thins 45 lines, woman
- Pieter 31 lines, man
- Van Leeuwenhoek 28 lines, man
- Cornelia 20 lines, woman
- Mother 14 lines, woman
Full cast, 17 people
- Scarlett Johansson as Griet
- Colin Firth as Johannes Vermeer
- Tom Wilkinson as Pieter Van Ruijven
- Cillian Murphy as Pieter
- Judy Parfitt as Maria Thins
- Essie Davis as Catharina Bolnes Vermeer
- Joanna Scanlan as Tanneke
- Gabrielle Reidy as Griet's Mother
- Chris McHallem as Griet's Father
- Alakina Mann as Cornelia Vermeer
- Rollo Weeks as Frans
- Anna Popplewell as Maertge
- Claire Johnston as White Haired Woman
- John McEnery as Apothecary
- Geoff Bell as Paul The Butcher
- Gintarė Parulytė as Model
- Robert Sibenaler as Priest
Who talks, scene by scene
Lines of dialogue in every 4 scenes, start to finish. Women above the line, men below.
Women
Men
Scene 1 Scene 151
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 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 to 8 | 3 | 1 |
| 9 to 12 | 18 | 8 |
| 13 to 16 | 5 | 0 |
| 17 to 20 | 16 | 0 |
| 21 to 24 | 3 | 0 |
| 25 to 28 | 18 | 0 |
| 29 to 32 | 9 | 8 |
| 33 to 36 | 10 | 14 |
| 37 to 40 | 7 | 15 |
| 41 to 44 | 2 | 0 |
| 45 to 48 | 0 | 0 |
| 49 to 52 | 3 | 4 |
| 53 to 56 | 6 | 15 |
| 57 to 60 | 5 | 0 |
| 61 to 64 | 7 | 5 |
| 65 to 68 | 8 | 5 |
| 69 to 72 | 15 | 6 |
| 73 to 76 | 9 | 7 |
| 77 to 80 | 15 | 11 |
| 81 to 84 | 4 | 9 |
| 85 to 88 | 4 | 10 |
| 89 to 92 | 17 | 7 |
| 93 to 96 | 18 | 35 |
| 97 to 100 | 3 | 0 |
| 101 to 104 | 7 | 2 |
| 105 to 108 | 10 | 1 |
| 109 to 112 | 13 | 21 |
| 113 to 116 | 7 | 9 |
| 117 to 120 | 6 | 12 |
| 121 to 124 | 11 | 32 |
| 125 to 128 | 9 | 10 |
| 129 to 132 | 7 | 12 |
| 133 to 136 | 10 | 0 |
| 137 to 140 | 2 | 6 |
| 141 to 144 | 20 | 6 |
| 145 to 148 | 0 | 0 |
| 149 to 151 | 9 | 0 |
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.
CATHARINA: Is that how you spend your time - arranging vegetables? GRIET: Oh no. Not at all.
CORNELIA: I'll catch it! CORNELIA: You made us! GRIET: Lisbeth? Aleydis? GRIET: Stop that! November 2003
CATHARINA: What is it? GRIET: About the studio, Mistress. CATHARINA: Yes? November 2003 GRIET: Should I clean the windows?
GRIET: You'll spoil it. CORNELIA: I don't care. GRIET: Pick it up. CORNELIA: No.
CATHARINA: There. Are you satisfied, Tanneke? TANNEKE: Yes, Mistress.
Exhibit B: every 100 lines
Out of every 100 lines with a known speaker, 54 are women's.
316 lines from women, 271 from men.
- Women
- Men
Exhibit C: who's in it
9 women and 7 men in the cast. 6 women and 7 men from it get lines.
Characters
With lines
- Women
- Men
Exhibit D: who gets heard
The first woman speaks at line 3 of 589.
The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 18 lines.
Every line of dialogue, first to last
- First line by a woman
- Longest stretch with no woman speaking
Words spoken
Women speak 51% of the words (3,001), men 49% (2,881). Women have 54% 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
25
Two men
6
Exhibit F: behind the camera
4 of the 11 people in these jobs are women.
Across the whole crew, 33% of the people whose gender is listed are women.
- Directed by
- Peter Webber (man)
- Written by
- Olivia Hetreed (woman)
- From the novel by
- Tracy Chevalier (woman)
- Produced by
- Andy Paterson (man), Anand Tucker (man)
- Shot by
- Eduardo Serra (man)
- Edited by
- Kate Evans (woman)
- Music by
- Alexandre Desplat (man)
- Production design by
- Ben van Os (gender not listed)
- Costumes by
- Dien van Straalen (gender not listed)
- Cast by
- Leo Davis (woman)
The crew, department by department
-
Production
1 women, 9 men, 4 not listed
-
Costume & Make-Up
3 women, 0 men, 2 not listed
-
Sound
0 women, 5 men
-
Art
1 women, 0 men, 2 not listed
-
Writing
2 women, 0 men
-
Camera
0 women, 1 men
-
Directing
0 women, 1 men
-
Editing
1 women, 0 men
- Women
- Men
- Gender not listed on TMDB
Exhibit G: how old the stars were
Women: 36 on average. Men: 42 on average.
The top-billed cast, at the film's release.
Women
Alakina Mann 13, Scarlett Johansson 19, Essie Davis 33, Joanna Scanlan 42, Gabrielle Reidy 43, Judy Parfitt 68
Men
Cillian Murphy 27, Colin Firth 43, Tom Wilkinson 55
Exhibit H: the money
It made 3.1 times what it cost.
- Budget
- $10.5 million
- Box office
- $33 million
From TMDB, not adjusted for inflation.
About this analysis
Our parser read the script: 151 scenes and 589 lines of dialogue. The bechdeltest.com rating comes from that site’s readers. How the test works
