Passes the Bechdel test
Once Upon a Time in America
1984. Directed by Sergio Leone, written by Harry Grey and Leonardo Benvenuti and Piero De Bernardi.
The Bechdel test
Bechdel score
3 / 3
Passes
-
Yes
1. At least two women
18 women characters. 14 of them speak. -
Yes
2. Who talk to each other
In 1 scene out of 1. -
Yes
3. About something besides a man
In that scene, our script parser found no man named. See the scene.
Second opinion
Disagree bechdeltest.com readers give it 1 out of 3.
The film
With the vivid memory of his long-gone childhood friends Max, Patsy, and Cockeye etched in his mind, his ferociously loyal partners-in-crime during their rise to prominence in New York's Prohibition-era Lower East Side, the defeated, penniless, and guilt-ridden former gangster David "Noodles" Aaronson returns to Manhattan. Not knowing what to expect on his mission to shed light on his opaque past, grizzled Noodles reunites with his only living friend Fat Moe after 35 haunted years of self-exile. However, the relentless, piercing sound of culpability stands in the way of finding closure, as the inscrutable content of a well-worn leather suitcase further complicates matters. And now, against the backdrop of a torn conscience, the sad, bittersweet recollections of more than 50 years of love, death, and everything in-between become inextricably intertwined, leading to even more puzzling questions. But what are a man's options when he is left with nothing?
- Released
- 01 Jun 1984
- Genres
- Crime, Drama
- Rated
- R
- IMDb
- 8.3 / 10
- Metascore
- 75 / 100
- Awards
- Won 2 BAFTA Awards. 12 wins & 19 nominations total
- Elsewhere
- View on IMDb
Starring, by lines spoken
- Women
- Men
- Not in the cast list
- Bigger name, more lines
- Noodles 295 lines, man
- Max 137 lines, man
- Deborah 64 lines, woman
- Carol 37 lines, woman
- Patsy 34 lines, man
- Jimmy 32 lines, man
- Eve 31 lines, woman
- Fat Moe 28 lines, man
- Cockeye 26 lines, man
- Peggy 19 lines, woman
Full cast, 82 people
- Robert De Niro as Noodles
- James Woods as Max
- Elizabeth McGovern as Deborah
- Joe Pesci as Frankie
- Burt Young as Joe
- Tuesday Weld as Carol
- Treat Williams as Jimmy O'Donnell
- Danny Aiello as Police Chief Aiello
- Richard Bright as Chicken Joe
- James Hayden as Patsy
- William Forsythe as Cockeye
- Darlanne Fluegel as Eve
- Larry Rapp as Fat Moe
- Richard Foronjy as Whitey
- Robert Harper as Sharkey
- Dutch Miller as Van Linden
- Gerard Murphy as Crowning
- Amy Ryder as Peggy
- Olga Karlatos as Woman in Puppet Theatre
- Mario Brega as Mandy
- Ray Dittrich as Trigger
- Frank Gio as Beefy
- Karen Shallo as Mrs. Aiello
- Angelo Florio as Willie the Ape
- Scott Schutzman Tiler as Young Noodles
- Rusty Jacobs as Young Max / David
- Brian Bloom as Young Patsy
- Adrian Curran as Young Cockeye
- Mike Monetti as Young Fat Moe
- Noah Moazezi as Dominic
- James Russo as Bugsy
- Frankie Caserta as Bugsy's Gang
- Joey Marzella as Bugsy's Gang
- Clem Caserta as Al Capuano
- Frank Sisto as Fred Capuano
- Jerry Strivelli as Johnny Capuano
- Julie Cohen as Young Peggy
- Marvin Scott as Interviewer
- Mike Gendel as Irving Gold
- Paul Herman as Monkey
- Ann Neville as Girl in Coffin
- Joey Faye as Adorable Old Man
- Linda Ipanema as Nurse Thompson
- Tandy Cronyn as Reporter #1
- Richard Zobel as Reporter #2
- Baxter Harris as Reporter #3
- Arnon Milchan as Chauffeur
- Bruno Iannone as Thug
- Marty Licata as Cemetery Caretaker
- Marcia Jean Kurtz as Max's Mother
- Estelle Harris as Peggy's Mother
- Gerritt Debeer as Drunk
- Jennifer Connelly as Young Deborah
- Alexander Godfrey as Newstand Man
- Cliff Cudney as Mounted Policeman
- Paul Farentino as Mounted Policeman #2
- Bruce Bahrenburg as Sergeant Halloran
- Mort Freeman as Street Singer
- Sandra Solberg as Young Deborah's Friend
- Jay Zeely as Foreman
- Massimo Liti as Young Macrò
- Salvatore Billa as Beefy's Thug (uncredited)
- Scott Coffey as Bugsy's Gang (uncredited)
- Marco Stefanelli as Bugsy's Gang (uncredited)
- Bruno Bilotta as Chinese Theater Spectator (uncredited)
- Francesca Leone as David's Girlfriend (uncredited)
- Chuck Low as Deborah's Father (uncredited)
- Nelson Camp as Newspaper Salesman (uncredited)
- Susan Spafford as Nurse (uncredited)
- Mark Frazer as Pimp (uncredited)
- Maria Pia Monicelli as Prostitute (uncredited)
- Dario Iori as Speakeasy Banjo Player (uncredited)
- Gianni Sanjust as Speakeasy Clarinet Player (uncredited)
- Nunzio Giuliani as Speakeasy Drum Player (uncredited)
- Ole Jorgensen as Speakeasy Percussionist (uncredited)
- Nicola Roberto as Speakeasy Trumpet Player (uncredited)
- Alex Serra as Speakeasy Vocalist (uncredited)
- Rossana Canghiari as Speakeasy Patron (uncredited)
- Ryan Paris as Speakeasy Patron (uncredited)
- Claudio Mancini as Syndacalist (uncredited)
- Ron Nummi as Waiter (uncredited)
- Louise Fletcher as Director of Riverdale Cemetery
Who talks, scene by scene
We couldn't read who says what in this film's script, so there's no dialogue chart for it yet.
The evidence
- Straight from the script
- Counted from the script and the credits
Tap an exhibit to open it.
Exhibit A: the passing scene
The scene our parser counted as passing, word for word.
PEGGY: Oh, Carol. CAROL: Not a chance. I'd remember a bunch of good-lookers like these.
Exhibit B: every 100 lines
Out of every 100 lines with a known speaker, 21 are women's.
189 lines from women, 703 from men.
- Women
- Men
Exhibit C: who's in it
18 women and 41 men in the cast. 14 women and 16 men from it get lines.
Characters
With lines
- Women
- Men
Exhibit D: who gets heard
The first woman speaks at line 48 of 1,003.
The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 79 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 (1,870), men 76% (5,896). Women have 21% 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
1
Two men
64
Exhibit F: behind the camera
3 of the 16 people in these jobs are women.
Across the whole crew, 15% of the people whose gender is listed are women.
- Directed by
- Sergio Leone (man)
- Written by
- Sergio Leone (man), Enrico Medioli (man), Piero De Bernardi (man), Franco Arcalli (man), Leonardo Benvenuti (man), Franco Ferrini (man)
- From the novel by
- Harry Grey (man)
- Produced by
- Arnon Milchan (man)
- Shot by
- Tonino Delli Colli (man)
- Edited by
- Nino Baragli (man)
- Music by
- Ennio Morricone (man)
- Production design by
- Giovanni Natalucci (man)
- Costumes by
- Gabriella Pescucci (woman)
- Cast by
- Joy Todd (woman), Cis Corman (woman)
The crew, department by department
-
Production
4 women, 8 men, 18 not listed
-
Sound
0 women, 8 men, 12 not listed
-
Art
1 women, 6 men, 12 not listed
-
Other crew
0 women, 8 men, 9 not listed
-
Costume & Make-Up
3 women, 3 men, 9 not listed
-
Camera
0 women, 6 men, 8 not listed
-
Editing
1 women, 3 men, 6 not listed
-
Lighting
0 women, 1 men, 7 not listed
- Women
- Men
- Gender not listed on TMDB
Exhibit G: how old the stars were
Women: 31 on average. Men: 40 on average.
The top-billed cast, at the film's release.
Women
Elizabeth McGovern 22, Tuesday Weld 40
Men
James Hayden 30, Treat Williams 32, James Woods 37, Robert De Niro 40, Joe Pesci 41, Burt Young 44, Richard Bright 46, Danny Aiello 50
Exhibit H: the money
It made 18% of what it cost.
- Budget
- $30 million
- Box office
- $5.5 million
From TMDB, not adjusted for inflation.
About this analysis
Our parser read the script: 1 scenes and 1,003 lines of dialogue. The bechdeltest.com rating comes from that site’s readers. How the test works
