Passes the Bechdel test

The Insider

Name: The Insider
Released: 1999

1999. Directed by Michael Mann, written by Marie Brenner and Eric Roth and Michael Mann.

The Bechdel test

Bechdel score

3 / 3

Passes

Yes 1. At least two women
12 women characters. 6 of them speak.
Yes 2. Who talk to each other
In 3 scenes out of 203.
Yes 3. About something besides a man
In those scenes, our script parser found no man named. See the scene.

Second opinion

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

The film

Balls-out 60 Minutes Producer Lowell Bergman sniffs a story when a former research biologist for Brown and Williamson, Jeff Wigand, won't talk to him. When the company leans hard on Wigand to honor a confidentiality agreement, he gets his back up. Trusting Bergman and despite a crumbling marriage, he goes on camera for a Mike Wallace interview and risks arrest for contempt of court. Westinghouse is negotiating to buy CBS, so CBS attorneys advise CBS News to shelve the interview and avoid a lawsuit. 60 Minutes and CBS News bosses cave, Wigand is hung out to dry, Bergman is compromised, and the CEOs of Big Tobacco may get away with perjury. Will the truth come out?

Released: 05 Nov 1999
Genres: Biography, Drama, History
Rated: R
IMDb: 7.8 / 10
Metascore: 85 / 100
Awards: Nominated for 7 Oscars. 23 wins & 58 nominations total
Elsewhere: View on IMDb

Starring, by lines spoken

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

Lowell 324 lines, man
Wigand 209 lines, man
Mike Wallace 88 lines, man
Liane 45 lines, woman
Don Hewitt 27 lines, man
Richard Scruggs 24 lines, man
Debbie Deluca 20 lines, woman
Barbara 18 lines, woman
Sharon 18 lines, woman
Jim Cooper 16 lines

Full cast, 83 people

Al Pacino as Lowell Bergman
Russell Crowe as Jeffrey Wigand
Christopher Plummer as Mike Wallace
Diane Venora as Liane Wigand
Philip Baker Hall as Don Hewitt
Lindsay Crouse as Sharon Tiller
Debi Mazar as Debbie De Luca
Stephen Tobolowsky as Eric Kluster
Colm Feore as Richard Scruggs
Bruce McGill as Ron Motley
Gina Gershon as Helen Caperelli
Michael Gambon as Thomas Sandefur
Rip Torn as John Scanlon
Lynne Thigpen as Mrs. Williams
Hallie Eisenberg as Barbara Wigand
Michael Paul Chan as Norman the Cameraman
Linda Hart as Mrs. Wigand
Robert Harper as Mark Stern
Nestor Serrano as FBI Agent Robertson
Pete Hamill as NY Times Reporter
Wings Hauser as Tobacco Lawyer
Cliff Curtis as Sheikh Fadlallah
Renee Olstead as Deborah Wigand
Michael Moore as Michael Moore
Gary Sandy as Sandefur's Lawyer
Willie C. Carpenter as John Harris
Paul Butler as Charlie Phillips
Jack Palladino as Jack Palladino
Megan Odebash as Sandra Sutherland
Roger Bart as Seelbach Hotel Manager
Alan Desatti as Hezbollah Interpreter
Sayed Badreya as Hezbollah Head Gunman
Chris Ufland as Doug Oliver - FDA
Douglas McGrath as Private Investigator
Bill Sage as Intense Young Intern
Joseph Hindy as Baldo the Editor
Dennis Garber as FBI Agent #1
Tim Grimm as FBI Agent #2
Paul Perri as Geologist / FBI Man
Wanda De Jesus as Geologist / FBI Woman
Robert Patrick Brink as Policeman
Vincent Foster as Bill Felling
James Harper as FBI Agent #3
Eyal Podell as Lowell's Son
Breckin Meyer as Sharon's Son
David Roberson as John Telefarro
Gregg E. Muravchick as Private Security Guard
William P. Bradford as Subpoena Man
David Clyde Carr as Local Newscaster
Ann Reskin as Seelbach Hotel Desk Clerk
Claire Slemmer as Edie Magnus
Steve Salge as Dan Rather
Derrick Jones as Mississippi Reporter
Donald F. Burbrink as B & W Male Security Officer
Vyto Ruginis as Junior Lawyer
George R. Parsons as B & W Uniformed Security Officer
Isodine Loury as Mississippi Court Stenographer
Charlene Bosarge as Mr. Scruggs' Assistant
Saemi Nakamura as Japanese Waitress
Ronal G. Yokley as Police Detective
Bob Lazarus as Stage Manager
Robert J. Ragno Jr. as Photographer - New Media
Alvin L. Welch as Judge
Nathan Lewis Hill as Production Assistant
Paula Bisbikos as Mike Wallace's Assistant
Christi Evans as CBS News Producer
Knox White as Soundman
Amy L. Caudill as A Student
Cara Briese as Student (uncredited)
Phil Hawn as Businessman at Airport (uncredited)
Spencer Kayden as Woman at Airport (uncredited)
Zane Lamprey as Man at Airport (uncredited)
Don Langley as Patron (uncredited)
Clyde Lee as Clyde Lee (uncredited)
Robert D. Parham as Lawyer (uncredited)
Roger Phenix as TV Camera Crew at Trial (uncredited)
Scott Ritcher as Courthouse Press Member (uncredited)
Brian Canberg as Attorney on Street (uncredited)
J.B. Flinn as Man with Drink (uncredited)
Tom Jones as Teenager in Cafeteria (uncredited)
Ted Speaker as New Orleans Murder Scene Onlooker (uncredited)
Robbie G. Tomlin as Courthouse Press Member (uncredited)
Susan Wagner as CBS Reporter (uncredited)

Who talks, scene by scene

Lines of dialogue in every 5 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 203

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 5	0	19
6 to 10	10	9
11 to 15	23	36
16 to 20	8	14
21 to 25	2	2
26 to 30	0	37
31 to 35	1	35
36 to 40	0	6
41 to 45	1	19
46 to 50	2	56
51 to 55	7	7
56 to 60	1	5
61 to 65	0	15
66 to 70	1	51
71 to 75	9	29
76 to 80	2	39
81 to 85	3	17
86 to 90	0	25
91 to 95	6	16
96 to 100	2	22
101 to 105	0	8
106 to 110	0	20
111 to 115	1	10
116 to 120	20	62
121 to 125	2	10
126 to 130	2	21
131 to 135	0	25
136 to 140	0	32
141 to 145	1	18
146 to 150	8	7
151 to 155	0	5
156 to 160	0	10
161 to 165	0	8
166 to 170	4	30
171 to 175	2	16
176 to 180	0	18
181 to 185	3	9
186 to 190	4	23
191 to 195	0	12
196 to 200	0	3
201 to 203	1	11

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.

BARBARA: Okay. BARBARA: Deborah? Debbie? LIANE: Oh, I didn't know you were home... It's early... Isn't it? LIANE: Gotta take Debbie to ballet...

DEBORAH: Can I go to dance tomorrow? I'm better... LIANE: ...if you are, then I'll take Barbara to soccer and take you to dance after...

LIANE: Yes, it's on the stove... LIANE: Do you want more rice? DEBORAH: Maybe later. LIANE: How about you?

BARBARA: Can I go over to Janeane's house? LIANE: I'm sorry, darling, have you seen my coffee mug...?

DEBORAH: What are you cooking? LIANE: I'm cooking pasta primavera. DEBORAH: Oh, I love that stuff. LIANE: I'm going to have to go downstairs.

Exhibit B: every 100 lines

Out of every 100 lines with a known speaker, 13 are women's.

126 lines from women, 817 from men.

Women
Men

Exhibit C: who's in it

12 women and 39 men in the cast. 6 women and 31 men from it get lines.

Characters

With lines

Women
Men

Exhibit D: who gets heard

The first woman speaks at line 23 of 993. The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 87 lines.

Every line of dialogue, first to last

First line by a woman
Longest stretch with no woman speaking

Words spoken

Women speak 9% of the words (1,044), men 91% (11,200). Women have 13% of the lines, so their lines run shorter 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

Two men

Exhibit F: behind the camera

3 of the 16 people in these jobs are women. Across the whole crew, 24% of the people whose gender is listed are women.

Directed by: Michael Mann (man)
Written by: Eric Roth (man), Michael Mann (man)
Produced by: Pieter Jan Brugge (man), Michael Mann (man)
Shot by: Dante Spinotti (man)
Edited by: William Goldenberg (man), David Rosenbloom (man), Paul Rubell (man)
Music by: Pieter Bourke (gender not listed), Lisa Gerrard (woman)
Production design by: Brian Morris (man)
Costumes by: Anna B. Sheppard (woman), Christopher Lawrence (man)
Cast by: Bonnie Timmermann (woman), Yael Aviv (gender not listed)