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Passes the Bechdel test

The Distinguished Gentleman

1992. Directed by Jonathan Lynn, written by Marty Kaplan and Jonathan Reynolds.

The Bechdel test

Bechdel score

3 / 3

Passes

  1. Yes 1. At least two women
    17 women characters. 12 of them speak.
  2. Yes 2. Who talk to each other
    In 1 scene out of 143.
  3. Yes 3. About something besides a man
    In that scene, our script parser found no man named. See the scene.

Second opinion

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

Poster for The Distinguished Gentleman

The film

In the conniving world of politics, even a professional shyster like Thomas Jefferson Johnson (Eddie Murphy) can find himself outmatched. After using name recognition to get elected, Johnson enjoys many of the same financial perks as other politicians. However, while investigating the connection between electric companies and cancer in young children, he unexpectedly develops a conscience. Unfortunately, fellow Congressman Dick Dodge (Lane Smith) isn't about to let him rock the boat.

Released
04 Dec 1992
Genres
Comedy, Crime
Rated
R
IMDb
5.9 / 10
Metascore
45 / 100
Awards
4 wins total
Elsewhere
View on IMDb

Starring, by lines spoken

  • Women
  • Men
  • Not in the cast list
  • Bigger name, more lines
  1. Tommy 413 lines, man
  2. Dodge 145 lines, man
  3. Celia 63 lines, woman
  4. Loretta 58 lines, woman
  5. Marshall 44 lines
  6. Andersen 42 lines, man
  7. Reinhardt 41 lines, man
  8. O'Connor 28 lines
  9. Grandma 21 lines, woman
  10. Bruno 19 lines, man
Full cast, 68 people
  • Eddie Murphy as Thomas Jefferson Johnson
  • Lane Smith as Dick Dodge
  • Sheryl Lee Ralph as Miss Loretta
  • Joe Don Baker as Olaf Andersen
  • Victoria Rowell as Celia Kirby
  • Grant Shaud as Arthur Reinhardt
  • Kevin McCarthy as Terry Corrigan
  • Charles S. Dutton as Elijah Hawkins
  • Victor Rivers as Armando
  • Chi McBride as Homer
  • Cynthia Harris as Vera Johnson
  • Noble Willingham as Zeke Bridges
  • Gary Frank as Iowa
  • Daniel Benzali as 'Skeeter' Warburton
  • Susan Forristal as Ellen Juba
  • Sonny Jim Gaines as Van Dyke
  • Autumn Winters as Mickey Juba
  • Doris Grau as Hattie Rifkin
  • Frances Foster as Grandma
  • Sarah Carson as Kimberly
  • Brad Koepenick as Rafe Simon
  • Mel Owens as Bo Chandler
  • James Garner as Jeff Johnson
  • John Doolittle as Ira Schecter
  • Rosanna Huffman as Mrs. Bridges
  • Dianne Turley Travis as Mrs. Dodge
  • Tom Dahlgren as Chief of Police
  • Tom Finnegan as Ethics Committee Chair
  • Marty Kaplan as Ned Grable
  • Cliff Bemis as Gun Lobbyist
  • Prudence Barry as Teacher
  • Nina Totenberg as Election Anchor
  • Julianna McCarthy as Blue Haired Lady
  • Daniel Petrie Jr. as Asbestos Lobbyist
  • Dion Anderson as Distilled Spirits Lobbyist
  • Stu Levin as Tobacco Lobbyist
  • Richard Anders as Poultry Lobbyist
  • Brian Gelatto as Crabhouse Waiter
  • Roger E. Reid as Florida Reporter
  • Angela Stribling as D.C. Anchor
  • Patricia Ciaffa as D.C. Correspondent
  • David A. Penhale as Voting Husband
  • Cordis Heard as Voting Wife
  • Gary Price as Taxi Driver
  • Tommy Boggs as Tommy Boggs
  • J.D. Williams as J.D. Williams
  • Sam Alejan as Press Technician (uncredited)
  • Lena Banks as Congressional Staff (uncredited)
  • Buzz Barbee as Funeral Attendee (uncredited)
  • Scott Barry as Press Cameraman (uncredited)
  • Robin Blake as Re-Election Party Guest (uncredited)
  • Robert Buckingham as Congressman Maxwell (uncredited)
  • John Copage as Banquet Guest (uncredited)
  • Peter Eastman as Funeral Attendee (uncredited)
  • Constance Estevez as Gwen, Society Woman (uncredited)
  • Anne Gaybis as 900 Phone Girl Maria (uncredited)
  • Ryal Haakenson as Banquet Guest (uncredited)
  • Kathryn Janssen as Banquet Guest (uncredited)
  • Gil Mandelik as Banquet Guest (uncredited)
  • Melissa S. Markess as Politician (uncredited)
  • Nils Nichols as Banquet Guest (uncredited)
  • Mark Norris as Ambassador (uncredited)
  • Sherry O’Keefe as Banquet Guest (uncredited)
  • David Pfeiffer as Congressman Rowland (uncredited)
  • John S. Platt as Congressman (uncredited)
  • Della Reese as Elevator Operator (uncredited)
  • John Rice as Congressman (uncredited)
  • Kevin G. Tracey as Funeral Attendee (uncredited)

Who talks, scene by scene

Lines of dialogue in every 3 scenes, start to finish. Women above the line, men below. 12% of lines come from characters we couldn't match to the cast list and aren't shown.

Women

Men

Scene 1 Scene 143

Hover, tap or tab to a bar to see those scenes: where they happen and who's talking.

Show the numbers
ScenesWomen's linesMen's lines
1 to 315
4 to 603
7 to 91574
10 to 1216
13 to 1547
16 to 182839
19 to 212127
22 to 2416
25 to 2735
28 to 3001
31 to 33020
34 to 3602
37 to 3901
40 to 42131
43 to 45021
46 to 4815
49 to 51113
52 to 5403
55 to 5711
58 to 601226
61 to 63026
64 to 6616
67 to 69917
70 to 72012
73 to 7508
76 to 78313
79 to 8157
82 to 8402
85 to 871113
88 to 90222
91 to 933319
94 to 96153
97 to 99410
100 to 102116
103 to 10578
106 to 10821
109 to 11102
112 to 114410
115 to 1171928
118 to 120138
121 to 123024
124 to 126111
127 to 12918
130 to 132017
133 to 135449
136 to 138649
139 to 141421
142 to 14335

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.
MICKEY: Power lines. MRS. JUBA: High-voltage power lines. The wires cause magnetic fields -- and the magnetic fields cause cancer. Especially in children.
MRS. JUBA: The studies, the numbers -- it's all there. MICKEY: You're not actually going to read those, are you?

Exhibit B: every 100 lines

Out of every 100 lines with a known speaker, 21 are women's.

212 lines from women, 791 from men.

  • Women
  • Men

Exhibit C: who's in it

17 women and 32 men in the cast. 12 women and 18 men from it get lines.

Characters

With lines

  • Women
  • Men

Exhibit D: who gets heard

The first woman speaks at line 5 of 1,141. The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 59 lines.

Every line of dialogue, first to last

  • First line by a woman
  • Longest stretch with no woman speaking

Words spoken

Women speak 21% of the words (3,086), men 79% (11,370).

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

Exhibit F: behind the camera

2 of the 13 people in these jobs are women. Across the whole crew, 14% of the people whose gender is listed are women.

Directed by
Jonathan Lynn (man)
Written by
Marty Kaplan (man)
Story by
Marty Kaplan (man), Jonathan Reynolds (man)
Produced by
Leonard Goldberg (man), Michael Peyser (man)
Shot by
Gabriel Beristain (man)
Edited by
Barry B. Leirer (gender not listed), Tony Lombardo (man)
Music by
Randy Edelman (man)
Production design by
Leslie Dilley (man)
Costumes by
Francine Jamison-Tanchuck (woman)
Cast by
Mary Goldberg (woman)

The crew, department by department

  • Sound

    1 women, 20 men, 11 not listed

  • Art

    3 women, 10 men, 6 not listed

  • Costume & Make-Up

    1 women, 6 men, 8 not listed

  • Camera

    1 women, 5 men, 8 not listed

  • Production

    2 women, 5 men, 4 not listed

  • Editing

    0 women, 2 men, 4 not listed

  • Directing

    1 women, 2 men, 2 not listed

  • Other crew

    0 women, 1 men, 2 not listed

  • Women
  • Men
  • Gender not listed on TMDB

Exhibit G: how old the stars were

Women: 34 on average. Men: 45 on average. The top-billed cast, at the film's release.

Women

Victoria Rowell 33, Sheryl Lee Ralph 35

Men

Eddie Murphy 31, Grant Shaud 31, Chi McBride 31, Victor Rivers 37, Charles S. Dutton 41, Lane Smith 56, Joe Don Baker 56, Kevin McCarthy 78

Exhibit H: the money

It made 93% of what it cost.

Budget
$50 million
Box office
$46.7 million

From TMDB, not adjusted for inflation.

About this analysis

Our parser read the script: 143 scenes and 1,141 lines of dialogue. How the test works

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