Fails the Bechdel test

The Lost City of Z

Name: The Lost City of Z
Released: 2017

2017. Directed by James Gray, written by James Gray and David Grann.

The Bechdel test

Bechdel score

2 / 3

Fails

Yes 1. At least two women
3 women characters. 3 of them speak.
Yes 2. Who talk to each other
Women do talk to each other.
No 3. About something besides a man
Every conversation between women that our parser found mentions a man.

Second opinion

Agree bechdeltest.com readers give it 1 out of 3.

The film

The Lost City of Z tells the incredible true story of British explorer Percy Fawcett, who journeys into the Amazon at the dawn of the 20th century and discovers evidence of a previously unknown, advanced civilization that may have once inhabited the region. Despite being ridiculed by the scientific establishment who regard indigenous populations as "savages," the determined Fawcett - supported by his devoted wife, son and aide de camp returns time and again to his beloved jungle in an attempt to prove his case, culminating in his mysterious disappearance in 1925.

Released: 21 Apr 2017
Genres: Adventure, Biography, Drama
Rated: PG-13
IMDb: 6.6 / 10
Metascore: 78 / 100
Awards: 5 wins & 31 nominations total
Elsewhere: View on IMDb

Starring, by lines spoken

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

Percy Fawcett 364 lines, man
Henry Costin 88 lines, man
Nina Fawcett 80 lines, woman
James Murray 46 lines, man
Jack Fawcett 45 lines, man
Arthur Manley 33 lines, man
Sir John Scott Keltie 28 lines, man
Sir George Goldie 20 lines, man
William Barclay 12 lines, man
Dan 10 lines, man

Full cast, 44 people

Charlie Hunnam as Percival Fawcett
Robert Pattinson as Henry Costin
Sienna Miller as Nina Fawcett
Tom Holland as Jack Fawcett
Angus Macfadyen as James Murray
Edward Ashley as Arthur Manley
Clive Francis as Sir John Scott Keltie
Ian McDiarmid as Sir George Goldie
Franco Nero as Baron de Gondoriz
Matthew Sunderland as Dan
Johann Myers as Willis
Daniel Huttlestone as Brian Fawcett (15 Yr Old)
Harry Melling as William Barclay
Pedro Coello as Tadjui
Aleksandar Jovanović as Urquhart
Yelena Solovey as Madame Kumel
Bobby Smalldridge as Jack Fawcett (7 Yr Old)
Tom Mulheron as Jack Fawcett (3 Yr Old)
Nathaniel Bates Fisher as Brian Fawcett (7 Yr Old)
Murray Melvin as Lord James Bernard
Michael Jenn as Brigd-General Sidney Thornton
Michael Ford-FitzGerald as Hunt Leader
Frank Clem as Texas Gunman
Bethan Coomber as Joan Fawcett (7 Yr Old)
David Calder as Secretary Bryce
Stacy Shane as American Reporter
Pat Mooney as Random Scientist 3
Colin Carnegie as Random Scientist 2
Anthony Boyle as Trench Runner
Neil Bromley as Reporter 3
Bill Hurst as Reporter 1
Richard Croxford as Officer Thomas Busby
Louise Parker as Random Woman
Jose Pereira as Chief Guarayo
Gustavo Duque as Crew Member
Fernando Vigui as Diminutive Latino Man
Nicholas Agnew as John Coundley
Robert Fawsitt as Random Man at Port
Patrick McBrearty as Whipping Officer
Gary Crossan as Waiter @ Savage Club
Niall Cusack as Random Scientist
Nick Sampson as Doctor
Ruairí Heading as Other Soldier
David Coon as Random Scientist 4

Who talks, scene by scene

Lines of dialogue in every 3 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 130

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	1	1
4 to 6	2	10
7 to 9	9	27
10 to 12	4	38
13 to 15	4	19
16 to 18	0	27
19 to 21	1	10
22 to 24	0	16
25 to 27	0	2
28 to 30	0	65
31 to 33	0	5
34 to 36	0	18
37 to 39	0	3
40 to 42	0	37
43 to 45	0	20
46 to 48	2	13
49 to 51	0	15
52 to 54	5	36
55 to 57	14	34
58 to 60	0	9
61 to 63	1	18
64 to 66	0	23
67 to 69	0	29
70 to 72	0	16
73 to 75	5	6
76 to 78	2	26
79 to 81	3	14
82 to 84	0	17
85 to 87	7	9
88 to 90	2	3
91 to 93	5	15
94 to 96	2	11
97 to 99	4	42
100 to 102	4	26
103 to 105	0	5
106 to 108	0	8
109 to 111	0	1
112 to 114	0	4
115 to 117	0	3
118 to 120	0	5
121 to 123	0	4
124 to 126	5	16
127 to 129	9	14
130 to 130	0	0

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.

91 lines from women, 720 from men.

Women
Men

Exhibit B: who's in it

3 women and 26 men in the cast. 3 women and 18 men from it get lines.

Characters

With lines

Women
Men

Exhibit C: who gets heard

The first woman speaks at line 2 of 866. The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 191 lines.

Every line of dialogue, first to last

First line by a woman
Longest stretch with no woman speaking

Words spoken

Women speak 13% of the words (1,483), men 87% (9,731). 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 16 people in these jobs are women. Across the whole crew, 32% of the people whose gender is listed are women.

Directed by: James Gray (man)
Written by: James Gray (man)
From the novel by: David Grann (man)
Produced by: Jeremy Kleiner (man), Anthony Katagas (man), Dede Gardner (woman), James Gray (man), Dale Armin Johnson (gender not listed)
Shot by: Darius Khondji (man)
Edited by: John Axelrad (man), Lee Haugen (gender not listed)
Music by: Christopher Spelman (gender not listed)
Production design by: Jean-Vincent Puzos (man)
Costumes by: Sonia Grande (woman)
Cast by: Kate Ringsell (woman), Carla Stronge (woman)