Fails the Bechdel test

The Burial

Name: The Burial
Released: 2023

2023. Directed by Maggie Betts, written by Doug Wright and Maggie Betts and Jonathan Harr.

The Bechdel test

Bechdel score

1 / 3

Fails

Yes 1. At least two women
9 women characters. 7 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

Not rated bechdeltest.com readers haven't rated this film.

The film

Inspired by true events, when a handshake deal goes sour, funeral home owner Jeremiah O'Keefe (Academy Award® winner Tommy Lee Jones) enlists charismatic, smooth-talking attorney Willie E. Gary (Academy Award® winner Jamie Foxx) to save his family business. Tempers flare and laughter ensues as the unlikely pair bond while exposing corporate corruption and racial injustice in this inspirational, triumphant story.

Released: 13 Oct 2023
Genres: Drama, History
Rated: R
IMDb: 7.1 / 10
Metascore: 74 / 100
Awards: 2 wins & 4 nominations total
Elsewhere: View on IMDb

Starring, by lines spoken

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

Willie Gary 259 lines, man
Jeremiah O’Keefe 157 lines, man
Mame Downes 107 lines, woman
Mike Allred 96 lines, man
Hal Dockins 94 lines, man
Ray Loewen 58 lines, man
Reggie Douglas 38 lines, man
Gloria Gary 31 lines, man
Annette O’Keefe 21 lines
Judge Graves 17 lines, man

Full cast, 43 people

Tommy Lee Jones as Jeremiah O'Keefe
Jamie Foxx as Willie E. Gary
Jurnee Smollett-Bell as Mame Downes
Alan Ruck as Mike Allred
Mamoudou Athie as Hal Dockins
Pamela Reed as Annette O'Keefe
Bill Camp as Ray Loewen
Amanda Warren as Gioria Gary
Dorian Missick as Reggie Douglas
Tywayne Wheatt as Al Jones
Lance E. Nichols as Judge Graves
Keith Jefferson as Dashaan Harris
B.J. Clinkscales as Chris Wakefield
Doug Spearman as Richard Mayfield
Gralen Bryant Banks as Walter Bell
Olivia Brody as Little O'Keefe Granddaughter
Dave Maldonado as Jim Lafont
Billy Slaughter as Robert Sperry
Christopher Winchester as Steve
Lorna Street Dopson as Hotel Receptionist
Erika Robel as Lorraine McGrath
Fracaswell Hyman as Ruben Soames
Donna DuPlantier as Mattie Thibodeau
David Alexander as Gary Reynolds
Dan Sheynin as Hotel Bar Bartender
Andrea Frankle as Mrs. Cassidy
Logan Macrae as Jodie O'Keefe
Jalene Mack as Jury Foreman
Sam Malone as Jury Member #1
Summer Selby as Mamma Gary
Evan Brinkman as Paralegal in Courthouse
Cat Wilkinson as Secretary in Courthouse
David Shae as David Shatterock
Eric Mendenhall as Eric Bell
Dan Thorp as Jeff Tooray
George Ketsios as Rick Bronksy
Mike Harkins as Wendell Aldridge
Jason Bayle as Gordon Metzger
Jim Klock as Rick Riverridge
Vince Pisani as Professor Rossencomb
Willie E. Gary as Mr. G
Jason Bayle as GORDON METZGER
LeBaron Foster Thornton as NBC Witness #1

Who talks, scene by scene

Lines of dialogue in every 4 scenes, start to finish. Women above the line, men below. 6% of lines come from characters we couldn't match to the cast list and aren't shown.

Women

Men

Scene 1 Scene 147

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	1	22
9 to 12	1	13
13 to 16	3	48
17 to 20	0	55
21 to 24	0	12
25 to 28	0	1
29 to 32	0	3
33 to 36	0	0
37 to 40	0	21
41 to 44	0	69
45 to 48	0	37
49 to 52	0	46
53 to 56	0	31
57 to 60	0	14
61 to 64	0	36
65 to 68	0	23
69 to 72	30	61
73 to 76	7	23
77 to 80	0	18
81 to 84	0	0
85 to 88	0	0
89 to 92	4	21
93 to 96	14	41
97 to 100	3	18
101 to 104	13	25
105 to 108	19	66
109 to 112	0	8
113 to 116	0	21
117 to 120	4	10
121 to 124	0	22
125 to 128	3	22
129 to 132	7	51
133 to 136	10	21
137 to 140	0	21
141 to 144	3	5
145 to 147	8	8

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.

130 lines from women, 893 from men.

Women
Men

Exhibit B: who's in it

9 women and 29 men in the cast. 7 women and 34 men from it get lines.

Characters

With lines

Women
Men

Exhibit C: who gets heard

The first woman speaks at line 17 of 1,083. The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 450 lines.

Every line of dialogue, first to last

First line by a woman
Longest stretch with no woman speaking

Words spoken

Women speak 14% of the words (2,730), men 86% (16,303). Women have 13% 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

8 of the 15 people in these jobs are women. Across the whole crew, 43% of the people whose gender is listed are women.

Directed by: Maggie Betts (woman)
Written by: Maggie Betts (woman), Doug Wright (man)
Story by: Doug Wright (man)
Produced by: Celine Rattray (woman), Trudie Styler (woman), Jenette Kahn (woman), Adam Richman (man), Bobby Shriver (gender not listed), Datari Turner (man) and 1 more
Shot by: Maryse Alberti (woman)
Edited by: Lee Percy (man)
Production design by: Kay Lee (woman)
Costumes by: Mirren Gordon-Crozier (woman)