Fails the Bechdel test

Motherless Brooklyn

Name: Motherless Brooklyn
Released: 2019

2019. Directed by Edward Norton, written by Edward Norton and Jonathan Lethem.

The Bechdel test

Bechdel score

1 / 3

Fails

Yes 1. At least two women
9 women characters. 6 of them speak.
No 2. Who talk to each other
Our parser found no scene where two women talk to each other.
No 3. About something besides a man
Not reached: the film fails an earlier rule.

Second opinion

Disagree bechdeltest.com readers give it 3 out of 3.

The film

Set against the backdrop of 1950s New York, "Motherless Brooklyn" follows Lionel Essrog (Norton), a lonely private detective afflicted with Tourette's Syndrome, as he ventures to solve his friend's murder. Armed only with a few clues and the powerful engine of his obsessive mind, Lionel unravels closely-guarded secrets that hold the fate of the whole city in the balance.

Released: 01 Nov 2019
Genres: Crime, Drama, Mystery
Rated: R
IMDb: 6.8 / 10
Metascore: 60 / 100
Awards: 2 wins & 15 nominations total
Elsewhere: View on IMDb

Starring, by lines spoken

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

Lionel 388 lines, man
Minna 75 lines, man
Laura 62 lines, woman
Tony 60 lines, man
Danny 52 lines, man
Paul 47 lines, man
Randolph 44 lines, man
Coney 42 lines, man
Lieberman 24 lines, man
Trumpet 21 lines, man

Full cast, 41 people

Edward Norton as Lionel Essrog
Bruce Willis as Frank Minna
Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Laura Rose
Alec Baldwin as Moses Randolph
Willem Dafoe as Paul Randolph
Bobby Cannavale as Tony Vermonte
Cherry Jones as Gabby Horowitz
Michael Kenneth Williams as Trumpet Man
Leslie Mann as Julia Minna
Ethan Suplee as Gilbert Coney
Dallas Roberts as Danny Fantl
Josh Pais as William Lieberman
Robert Wisdom as Billy Rose
Fisher Stevens as Lou
Radu Spinghel as Giant Man
Peter Gray Lewis as Mayor
Isaiah J. Thompson as King Rooster Piano Player
Russell Hall as King Rooster Bassist
Joe Farnsworth as King Rooster Drummer
Jerry Weldon as King Rooster Saxophonist
Eric Berryman as King Rooster Bartender
Nelson Avidon as Jacob Gleason
Joseph Siravo as Union Boss Speaker
DeShawn White as Betty
Migs Govea as Formosa Bartender
Erica Sweany as Formosa Hostess
Katy Davis as Inwood Residential Secretary
Olli Haaskivi as Hall of Records Clerk
Yinka Adeboyeku as Angry Young Man
Joyce O'Connor as Cindy Fleming
Thomas Luiz Leninger as Paperboy
Deborah Unger as Brooklyn Bar Waitress
Ezra Barnes as Doctor
Julie Hays as Nurse
Damien Brett as Orderly
Russell G. Jones as Reformer #2
Stephen Adly Guirgis as Detective
Eli Bridges as Beatnik
Luis Castro de Leon as Young Cat #1
Teren Carter as Young Cat #2
Tom Waits as News Stand Owner (uncredited)

Who talks, scene by scene

Lines of dialogue in every 3 scenes, start to finish. Women above the line, men below. 5% of lines come from characters we couldn't match to the cast list and aren't shown.

Women

Men

Scene 1 Scene 139

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	40
4 to 6	0	78
7 to 9	0	4
10 to 12	0	7
13 to 15	0	48
16 to 18	3	18
19 to 21	0	7
22 to 24	14	38
25 to 27	0	1
28 to 30	0	1
31 to 33	2	14
34 to 36	6	31
37 to 39	0	13
40 to 42	4	33
43 to 45	0	13
46 to 48	0	36
49 to 51	0	0
52 to 54	0	13
55 to 57	0	37
58 to 60	0	0
61 to 63	6	20
64 to 66	0	32
67 to 69	0	3
70 to 72	0	23
73 to 75	0	1
76 to 78	11	19
79 to 81	9	8
82 to 84	0	11
85 to 87	0	8
88 to 90	8	30
91 to 93	5	35
94 to 96	3	5
97 to 99	0	41
100 to 102	0	2
103 to 105	21	32
106 to 108	0	0
109 to 111	0	28
112 to 114	10	29
115 to 117	0	18
118 to 120	0	20
121 to 123	1	18
124 to 126	0	1
127 to 129	0	2
130 to 132	2	1
133 to 135	1	38
136 to 138	0	2
139 to 139	4	5

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, 11 are women's.

110 lines from women, 864 from men.

Women
Men

Exhibit B: who's in it

9 women and 29 men in the cast. 6 women and 28 men from it get lines.

Characters

With lines

Women
Men

Exhibit C: who gets heard

The first woman speaks at line 191 of 1,028. The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 190 lines.

Every line of dialogue, first to last

First line by a woman
Longest stretch with no woman speaking

Words spoken

Women speak 12% of the words (1,661), men 88% (12,095). Women have 11% of the lines, so their lines run longer than men's.

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

Two men

Exhibit E: behind the camera

4 of the 13 people in these jobs are women. Across the whole crew, 28% of the people whose gender is listed are women.

Directed by: Edward Norton (man)
Written by: Edward Norton (man)
From the novel by: Jonathan Lethem (man)
Produced by: Michael Bederman (man), Edward Norton (man), Rachel Shane (woman), Bill Migliore (man), Gigi Pritzker (woman)
Shot by: Dick Pope (man)
Edited by: Joe Klotz (man)
Music by: Daniel Pemberton (man)
Production design by: Beth Mickle (woman)
Cast by: Avy Kaufman (woman)