Passes the Bechdel test
JFK
1991. Directed by Oliver Stone, written by Jim Garrison and Jim Marrs and Oliver Stone.
The Bechdel test
Bechdel score
3 / 3
Passes
-
Yes
1. At least two women
29 women characters. 15 of them speak. -
Yes
2. Who talk to each other
In 1 scene out of 5. -
Yes
3. About something besides a man
In that scene, our script parser found no man named. See the scene.
Second opinion
Agree bechdeltest.com readers give it 3 out of 3.
The film
On November 22, 1963, president John F. Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas. Lee Harvey Oswald is arrested for the crime and subsequently shot by Jack Ruby, supposedly avenging the president's death. An investigation concludes that Lee Harvey Oswald and Jack Ruby acted alone in their respective crimes, but Louisiana district attorney Jim Garrison is skeptical. Assembling a trusted group of people, Garrison conducts his own investigation, bringing about backlash from powerful government and political figures.
- Released
- 20 Dec 1991
- Genres
- Drama, History, Thriller
- Rated
- R
- IMDb
- 8 / 10
- Metascore
- 72 / 100
- Awards
- Won 2 Oscars. 19 wins & 42 nominations total
- Elsewhere
- View on IMDb
Starring, by lines spoken
- Women
- Men
- Not in the cast list
- Bigger name, more lines
- Jim 408 lines, man
- Lou 90 lines, man
- Bill 63 lines, man
- Ferrie 59 lines, man
- Liz 53 lines, woman
- Susie 48 lines, woman
- X 38 lines
- Shaw 32 lines, man
- Martin 30 lines, man
- Jean Hill 23 lines, woman
Full cast, 155 people
- Kevin Costner as Jim Garrison
- Tommy Lee Jones as Clay Shaw
- Gary Oldman as Lee Harvey Oswald
- Kevin Bacon as Willie O'Keefe
- Michael Rooker as Bill Broussard
- Jack Lemmon as Jack Martin
- Laurie Metcalf as Susie Cox
- Sissy Spacek as Liz Garrison
- Joe Pesci as David Ferrie
- John Candy as Dean Andrews
- Pruitt Taylor Vince as Lee Bowers
- Jay O. Sanders as Lou Ivon
- Walter Matthau as Senator Long
- Sally Kirkland as Rose Cheramie
- Donald Sutherland as X
- Ed Asner as Guy Bannister
- Brian Doyle-Murray as Jack Ruby
- Ray LePere as Zapruder
- Vincent D'Onofrio as Bill Newman
- Tom Howard as L. B. J.
- Lolita Davidovich as Beverly Oliver
- Jim Garrison as Earl Warren
- Wayne Knight as Numa Bertel
- Gary Grubbs as Al Oser
- Beata Poźniak as Marina Oswald
- Tony Plana as Carlos Bringuier
- John William Galt as L. B. J. voice
- Ron Jackson as FBI Spokesman
- Sean Stone as Jasper Garrison
- John S. Davies as Hobo #2
- Tomas Milian as Leopoldo
- Raul Aranas as Angelo
- Gail Cronauer as Janet Williams
- Gary Carter as Bill Williams
- James N. Harrell as Sam Holland
- Ellen McElduff as Jean Hill
- Jo Anderson as Julia Ann Mercer
- Marco Perella as Mercer Interrogator
- Edwin Neal as Mercer Interrogator
- Darryl Cox as FBI Agent #2 with Hill
- T.J. Kennedy as Hill Interrogator
- J.J. Johnston as Mobster with Broussard
- R. Bruce Elliott as Bolton Ford Dealer
- William Larsen as Will Fritz
- Wayne Tippit as FBI Agent - Frank
- Dale Dye as General Y
- Jerry Douglas as Board Room Man
- Ryan MacDonald as Board Room Man
- Duane Grey as Board Room Man
- George R. Robertson as White House Man
- Baxter Harris as White House Man
- John Seitz as General Lemnitzer
- Alex Rodine as White House Man
- Sam Stoneburner as White House Man
- Bob Gunton as TV Newsman #3
- John Finnegan as Judge Haggerty
- Walter Breaux as Vernon Bundy
- Melodee Bowman as FBI Receptionist
- Peter Maloney as Colonel Finck
- Richard Rutowski as Fence Shooter
- Bill Bolender as Prisoner Powell
- Price Carson as Tippet
- Gil Glasgow as Tippet Shooter
- Bob Orwig as Officer Poe
- Hugh Feagin as Dr. Rose
- George Kelly as Jerry Johnson Sidekick
- Victor Kempster as Samuel
- John Larroquette as Jerry Johnson
- Maria Mason as Garrison's Secretary
- Ron Rifkin as Mr. Goldberg (Spiesel)
- Frank Whaley as Oswald Imposter
- Kevin Beard as (uncredited)
- Jeffrey Bornstein as Hitman (uncredited)
- Marie Del Marco as Secretary in Window (uncredited)
- Alan Donnes as Reporter (uncredited)
- Orlando Gallegos as Plaza Witness (uncredited)
- Robert J. Groden as Courtroom Projectionist (uncredited)
- Chuck Kelley as Dallas County Sherriff (uncredited)
- Codie Scott as Man in Court (uncredited)
- Martin Sheen as Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
- John F. Kennedy as Self (archive footage)
- Anthony Ramirez as Epileptic
- Stanley White as B Team Shooter
- Fidel Castro as Self (archive footage)
- Jacqueline Kennedy as Self (archive footage)
- John Connally as Self (archive footage)
- Richmond Hoxie as TV Reporter
- Allison Pratt Davis as Elizabeth Garrison
- Scott Krueger as Snapper Garrison
- Ngô Đình Diệm as Self - Walking with Stick (archive footage)
- Agnes Aurelio as D.A. Staff
- Gary Taggart as Doctor
- E.J. Morris as Plaza Witness #1
- Cheryl Penland as Plaza Witness #2
- Jim Gough as Plaza Witness #3
- Perry R. Russo as Angry Bar Patron
- Mike Longman as TV Newsman #1
- Ann Strub as Banister's Secretary
- Pat Perkins as Mattie
- Amy Long as Virginia Garrison
- Red Mitchell as Sgt. Harkness
- Ronald von Klaussen as Hobo #1
- Michael Ozag as Hobo #3
- John C. Martin as Prison Guard
- Henri Alciatore as Maitre d'
- Willem Oltmans as George DeMohrenschildt
- Roxie M. Frnka as Earlene Roberts
- Zeke Mills as J.C. Price
- Ray Redd as Dodd
- Sally Nystuen Vahle as Mary Moorman
- Spain Logue as FBI Agent #1 with Hill
- Carolina McCullough as Stripper
- Barry Chambers as Man at Firing Range
- Linda Flores Wade as Sylvia Odio
- Alec Gifford as TV Newsman #2
- Eric A. Vicini as French Reporter
- Michael Gurievsky as Russian Reporter
- Caroline Crosthwaite-Eyre as British Reporter
- Helen Miller as Garrison Receptionist
- Harold G. Herthum as Coroner
- Norman Davis as Colonel Reich
- Errol McLendon as Man with Umbrella
- Bruce Gelb as Board Room Man
- Nathan Scott as John Chancler
- Jorge Fernández as Miguel Torres
- Doug Jackson as Stage Manager
- Murray Stokes as F.B.I. Agent at Airport
- Odin K. Langford as Officer Habighorst
- John St. Paul as Airport Police Sergeant
- Roy Barnitt as Irvin F. Dymond
- Alvin Spicuzza as Bailiff
- Carolyn T. Wright as Clinton Witness
- Henry Tull III as Clinton Sheriff
- Michael Skipper as James Teague
- I.D. Brickman as Dr. Peters
- Joseph Nadell as Dr. McClelland
- Chris Robinson as Dr. Humes
- Chris Renna as Bethesda Doctor
- Johnny Brink as Roy Truly
- David Benn as Kenny O'Donnell
- Dalton Dearborn as Army General
- Merlyn Sexton as Admiral Kenney
- Steve F. Price Jr. as Pathologist #1
- Tom Bullock as Pathologist #2
- Ruary O'Connell as Pathologist #3
- Christopher Kosiciuk as FBI Agent at Autopsy
- John Reneau as A Team Shooter
- Larry Melton as Patrolman Joe Smith
- Carol Farabee as Carolyn Arnold
- Willie Minor as Bonnie Ray Williams
- Ted Pennebaker as Arnold Rowland
- Bill Pickle as Marion Baker
- Mykel Chaves as Sandra Styles
- Loys T. Bergeron as Jury Foreman
- Kristina Hare as Reporter
Who talks, scene by scene
Lines of dialogue in every 1 scene, start to finish. Women above the line, men below. 10% of lines come from characters we couldn't match to the cast list and aren't shown.
Women
Men
Scene 1 Scene 5
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 1 | 2 | 12 |
| 2 to 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 to 3 | 8 | 96 |
| 4 to 4 | 76 | 573 |
| 5 to 5 | 84 | 341 |
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.
MATTIE: My God! My God! What have they done! It's lynchin' time! VIRGINIA: I'll get it. Hello.
VIRGINIA: Uh huh. LIZ: Who are you talking to?
Exhibit B: every 100 lines
Out of every 100 lines with a known speaker, 14 are women's.
170 lines from women, 1022 from men.
- Women
- Men
Exhibit C: who's in it
29 women and 121 men in the cast. 15 women and 62 men from it get lines.
Characters
With lines
- Women
- Men
Exhibit D: who gets heard
The first woman speaks at line 11 of 1,327.
The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 129 lines.
Every line of dialogue, first to last
- First line by a woman
- Longest stretch with no woman speaking
Words spoken
Women speak 15% of the words (4,542), men 85% (25,242). Women have 14% of the lines, so their lines run longer 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
7
Two men
73
Exhibit F: behind the camera
3 of the 16 people in these jobs are women.
Across the whole crew, 20% of the people whose gender is listed are women.
- Directed by
- Oliver Stone (man)
- Written by
- Oliver Stone (man), Zachary Sklar (man)
- Produced by
- A. Kitman Ho (man), Oliver Stone (man), Clayton Townsend (man)
- Shot by
- Robert Richardson (man)
- Edited by
- Joe Hutshing (man), Pietro Scalia (man)
- Music by
- John Williams (man)
- Production design by
- Victor Kempster (man)
- Costumes by
- Marlene Stewart (woman), Mark Burchard (gender not listed)
- Cast by
- Risa Bramon Garcia (woman), Heidi Levitt (woman), Billy Hopkins (man)
The crew, department by department
-
Sound
2 women, 23 men, 11 not listed
-
Other crew
0 women, 9 men, 15 not listed
-
Production
6 women, 10 men, 5 not listed
-
Costume & Make-Up
5 women, 3 men, 10 not listed
-
Art
0 women, 6 men, 11 not listed
-
Camera
0 women, 7 men, 7 not listed
-
Editing
2 women, 4 men, 1 not listed
-
Directing
2 women, 3 men, 1 not listed
- Women
- Men
- Gender not listed on TMDB
Exhibit G: how old the stars were
Women: 39 on average. Men: 42 on average.
The top-billed cast, at the film's release.
Women
Laurie Metcalf 36, Sissy Spacek 41
Men
Gary Oldman 33, Kevin Bacon 33, Kevin Costner 36, Michael Rooker 36, John Candy 41, Tommy Lee Jones 45, Joe Pesci 48, Jack Lemmon 66
Exhibit H: the money
It made 5.1 times what it cost.
- Budget
- $40 million
- Box office
- $205 million
From TMDB, not adjusted for inflation.
About this analysis
Our parser read the script: 5 scenes and 1,327 lines of dialogue. The bechdeltest.com rating comes from that site’s readers. How the test works
