Fails the Bechdel test
The Pursuit of Happyness
2006. Directed by Gabriele Muccino, written by Steve Conrad.
The Bechdel test
Bechdel score
1 / 3
Fails
-
Yes
1. At least two women
6 women characters. 4 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
Agree bechdeltest.com readers give it 0 out of 3.
The film
Based on a true story about a man named Christopher Gardner. Gardner has invested heavily in a device known as a "bone density scanner". He feels like he has it made selling these devices. However, they do not sell well as they are marginally better than x-ray at a much higher price. As Gardner works to make ends meet, his wife leaves him and he loses his apartment. Forced to live out in the streets with his son, Gardner continues to sell bone density scanners while concurrently taking on an unpaid internship as a stockbroker, with slim chances for advancement to a paid position. Before he can receive pay, he needs to outshine the competition through 6 months of training, and to sell his devices to stay afloat.
- Released
- 15 Dec 2006
- Genres
- Biography, Drama
- Rated
- PG-13
- IMDb
- 8 / 10
- Metascore
- 64 / 100
- Awards
- Nominated for 1 Oscar. 12 wins & 26 nominations total
- Elsewhere
- View on IMDb
Starring, by lines spoken
- Women
- Men
- Not in the cast list
- Bigger name, more lines
- Chris 574 lines, man
- Christopher 143 lines, man
- Linda 48 lines, woman
- First Partner 40 lines, man
- Twistle 39 lines, man
- Walter Ribbon 25 lines, man
- Alan 18 lines, man
- Filipino Guy 14 lines, man
- Spanish Guy 13 lines, man
- Acquaintance 9 lines
Full cast, 79 people
- Will Smith as Chris Gardner
- Jaden Smith as Christopher
- Thandiwe Newton as Linda
- Brian Howe as Jay Twistle
- James Karen as Martin Frohm
- Dan Castellaneta as Alan Frakesh
- Kurt Fuller as Walter Ribbon
- Takayo Fischer as Mrs. Chu
- Kevin West as World's Greatest Dad
- George Cheung as Chinese Maintenance Worker
- David Michael Silverman as Doctor at First Hospital
- Domenic Bove as Tim Ribbon
- Geoff Callan as Ferrari Owner
- Joyful Raven as Hippie Girl
- Scott Klace as Tim Brophy
- Rashida Clendening as Bus Driver
- Eric Schniewind as Doctor
- Peter Fitzsimmons as Doctor
- Maurice Sherbanee as Roy The Old Neighbor
- Zuhair Haddad as Cab Driver
- Victor Raider-Wexler as Landlord
- Mark Christopher Lawrence as Wayne
- Darryl Fong as Policeman
- George Maguire as Police Clerk
- Joe Nuñez as Driver Who Hits Chris
- Adam Del Rio as Shoe-Spotting Intern
- Rocky LaRochelle as Motel Manager
- Erin Beers as Dean Witter Receptionist
- Rueben Grundy as Businessman
- Ming Lo as Young Executive
- John Kovacevich as Young Executive
- Bonnie Akimoto as Doctor's Receptionist
- Stu Klitsner as Dr. Strauk
- Esther Scott as Shelter Worker
- Tina D'Elia as Shelter Worker
- Cecil Williams as Reverend Williams
- David Fine as Big Guy Rodney
- George Moffatt as Homeless Guy in Line
- Amir Talai as Clerk
- Mike Garibaldi as Paul
- Jason Frazier as Young Man - Bus Fight
- Kevin Crook as Smug Intern
- David Haines as Other Young Executive
- James Finnerty as News Reporter
- Abigail van Alyn as Ribbon's Receptionist
- Bob Greene as Doctor at Oakland Memorial Hospital
- Robert Anthony Peters as Glide Shelter Worker
- Terri Orth-Pallavicini as Secretary
- John Robb as Homeless Guy
- Daniel Wilder as Homeless Guy
- Cathy Fithian as Policewoman
- Keith Stevenson as Indian Grocery Clerk
- Jeff Applebaum as Dean Witter Employee
- Victor Hoagland as Ribbon's Associate
- Richard Bischoff as Ribbon's Associate
- Edward Donlin as Dr. Don Florio
- Larry Hunt as Bucket Man
- Rose Aispuro as Blood Center Clerk
- Arbin C. Kumar as Check Cashing Clerk
- Jerry Edward McLilly as Smiley
- Shareef Allman as Prisoner
- Jeffrey Moon as Pizza Dad
- Peaches Hutchinson as Pizza Mom
- Brandon Deadwiler as Pizza Son
- Tateanna Wheeler-Lezine as Pizza Daughter
- Karen Kahn as Professional Woman
- Phil Austin as Stock Broker (uncredited)
- Rick Camp as Bus Rider (uncredited)
- Brad Carr as Dean Witter Employee (uncredited)
- Zachary Culbertson as European Tourist (uncredited)
- Yeena Fisher as Businesswoman (uncredited)
- Ben Fritz as Dean Witter Trader (uncredited)
- Christopher Paul Gardner as Passerby on street (uncredited)
- Brendan Kruse as Bike Messenger (uncredited)
- Kenny Santiago Marrero as Stock Broker (uncredited)
- David Pearl as Stock Trader (uncredited)
- Austin Scott as Homeless Youth (uncredited)
- Adam Wang as Dean Witter Trader (uncredited)
- Antongiulio Frulio as Orchestrator
Who talks, scene by scene
Lines of dialogue in every 6 scenes, start to finish. Women above the line, men below. 3% of lines come from characters we couldn't match to the cast list and aren't shown.
Women
Men
Scene 1 Scene 252
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 6 | 2 | 18 |
| 7 to 12 | 0 | 11 |
| 13 to 18 | 0 | 12 |
| 19 to 24 | 0 | 23 |
| 25 to 30 | 14 | 15 |
| 31 to 36 | 2 | 13 |
| 37 to 42 | 3 | 4 |
| 43 to 48 | 5 | 38 |
| 49 to 54 | 0 | 15 |
| 55 to 60 | 0 | 4 |
| 61 to 66 | 1 | 15 |
| 67 to 72 | 6 | 15 |
| 73 to 78 | 0 | 32 |
| 79 to 84 | 3 | 10 |
| 85 to 90 | 0 | 23 |
| 91 to 96 | 5 | 27 |
| 97 to 102 | 0 | 13 |
| 103 to 108 | 8 | 16 |
| 109 to 114 | 0 | 51 |
| 115 to 120 | 0 | 4 |
| 121 to 126 | 6 | 39 |
| 127 to 132 | 0 | 9 |
| 133 to 138 | 0 | 51 |
| 139 to 144 | 0 | 7 |
| 145 to 150 | 3 | 29 |
| 151 to 156 | 0 | 16 |
| 157 to 162 | 0 | 1 |
| 163 to 168 | 0 | 6 |
| 169 to 174 | 0 | 44 |
| 175 to 180 | 0 | 55 |
| 181 to 186 | 0 | 19 |
| 187 to 192 | 0 | 21 |
| 193 to 198 | 0 | 42 |
| 199 to 204 | 7 | 27 |
| 205 to 210 | 0 | 54 |
| 211 to 216 | 0 | 16 |
| 217 to 222 | 0 | 19 |
| 223 to 228 | 0 | 45 |
| 229 to 234 | 6 | 8 |
| 235 to 240 | 0 | 25 |
| 241 to 246 | 0 | 15 |
| 247 to 252 | 0 | 52 |
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, 7 are women's.
71 lines from women, 959 from men.
- Women
- Men
Exhibit B: who's in it
6 women and 35 men in the cast. 4 women and 20 men from it get lines.
Characters
With lines
- Women
- Men
Exhibit C: who gets heard
The first woman speaks at line 4 of 1,067.
The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 235 lines.
Every line of dialogue, first to last
- First line by a woman
- Longest stretch with no woman speaking
Words spoken
Women speak 6% of the words (413), men 94% (6,338). Women have 7% of the lines, so their lines run shorter 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
0
Two men
62
Exhibit E: behind the camera
2 of the 10 people in these jobs are women.
Across the whole crew, 26% of the people whose gender is listed are women.
- Directed by
- Gabriele Muccino (man)
- Written by
- Steven Conrad (man)
- Produced by
- Steve Tisch (man), Will Smith (man)
- Shot by
- Phedon Papamichael (man)
- Edited by
- Hughes Winborne (man)
- Music by
- Andrea Guerra (man)
- Production design by
- J. Michael Riva (man)
- Costumes by
- Sharen Davis (woman)
- Cast by
- Denise Chamian (woman)
The crew, department by department
-
Costume & Make-Up
4 women, 0 men, 3 not listed
-
Other crew
1 women, 5 men, 1 not listed
-
Production
2 women, 5 men
-
Sound
0 women, 7 men
-
Art
2 women, 2 men
-
Camera
0 women, 2 men, 2 not listed
-
Directing
0 women, 2 men, 2 not listed
-
Editing
0 women, 2 men, 1 not listed
- Women
- Men
- Gender not listed on TMDB
Exhibit F: how old the stars were
Women: 54 on average. Men: 47 on average.
The top-billed cast, at the film's release.
Women
Thandiwe Newton 34, Takayo Fischer 74
Men
Jaden Smith 8, Will Smith 38, Kevin West 41, Brian Howe 48, Dan Castellaneta 49, Kurt Fuller 53, George Cheung 57, James Karen 83
Exhibit G: the money
It made 5.6 times what it cost.
- Budget
- $55 million
- Box office
- $307 million
From TMDB, not adjusted for inflation.
About this analysis
Our parser read the script: 252 scenes and 1,067 lines of dialogue. The bechdeltest.com rating comes from that site’s readers. How the test works
