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Passes the Bechdel test

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me

1992. Directed by David Lynch, written by David Lynch and Robert Engels and Mark Frost.

The Bechdel test

Bechdel score

3 / 3

Passes

  1. Yes 1. At least two women
    15 women characters. 34 of them speak.
  2. Yes 2. Who talk to each other
    In 11 scenes out of 132.
  3. Yes 3. About something besides a man
    In those scenes, our script parser found no man named. See the scene.

Second opinion

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

Poster for Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me

The film

A prequel to David Lynch and Mark Frost's earlier TV series "Twin Peaks". The first half-hour or so concerns the investigation by FBI Agent Chet Desmond (Chris Isaak) and his partner Sam Stanley (Kiefer Sutherland) into the murder of night-shift waitress Teresa Banks in the small Washington state town of Deer Meadow. When Desmond finds a mysterious clue to the murder, he inexplicably disappears. The film then cuts to one year later in the nearby town of Twin Peaks and follows the events during the last week in the life of Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee) a troubled teenage girl with two boyfriends; the hot-tempered rebel Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook) and quiet biker James Hurley (James Marshall), her drug addiction, and her relationship with her difficult (and possibly schizophrenic) father Leland (Ray Wise), a story in which her violent murder was later to motivate much of the TV series. Contains a considerable amount of sex, drugs, violence, very loud music and complex or interpretive imagery.

Released
28 Aug 1992
Genres
Drama, Horror, Mystery
Rated
R
IMDb
7.3 / 10
Metascore
46 / 100
Awards
4 wins & 7 nominations total
Elsewhere
View on IMDb

Starring, by lines spoken

  • Women
  • Men
  • Not in the cast list
  • Bigger name, more lines
  1. Laura 108 lines, woman
  2. Desmond 42 lines, man
  3. Stanley 38 lines, man
  4. Leland 28 lines, man
  5. Donna 25 lines, woman
  6. Bobby 18 lines, man
  7. Cooper 18 lines, man
  8. Carl 14 lines, man
  9. Jacques 13 lines, man
  10. Sarah 13 lines, woman
Full cast, 66 people
  • Sheryl Lee as Laura Palmer
  • Ray Wise as Leland Palmer
  • Mädchen Amick as Shelly Johnson
  • Dana Ashbrook as Bobby Briggs
  • Phoebe Augustine as Ronette Pulaski
  • David Bowie as Phillip Jeffries
  • Eric DaRe as Leo Johnson
  • Miguel Ferrer as Albert Rosenfield
  • Pamela Gidley as Teresa Banks
  • Heather Graham as Annie Blackburn
  • Chris Isaak as Special Agent Chester Desmond
  • Moira Kelly as Donna Hayward
  • Peggy Lipton as Norma Jennings
  • David Lynch as Gordon Cole
  • James Marshall as James Hurley
  • Jürgen Prochnow as Woodsman
  • Harry Dean Stanton as Carl Rodd
  • Kiefer Sutherland as Sam Stanley
  • Lenny Von Dohlen as Harold Smith
  • Grace Zabriskie as Sarah Palmer
  • Kyle MacLachlan as Special Agent Dale Cooper
  • Frances Bay as Mrs. Tremond (Chalfont)
  • Catherine E. Coulson as The Log Lady
  • Michael J. Anderson as Man From Another Place
  • Frank Silva as BOB
  • Walter Olkewicz as Jacques Renault
  • Al Strobel as Philip Gerard (The One Armed Man)
  • Gary Hershberger as Mike Nelson
  • Sandra Kinder as Irene at Hap's
  • Chris Pedersen as Tommy
  • Victor Rivers as Buck
  • Rick Aiello as Cliff Howard
  • Gary Bullock as Sheriff Cable
  • Jon Huck as FBI Agent
  • Mike Malone as FBI Agent
  • Joe Berman as Bus Driver
  • Yvonne Roberts as First Prostitute
  • Audra L. Cooper as Second Prostitute
  • John Hoobler as Pilot
  • Kimberly Ann Cole as Lil the Dancer
  • Elizabeth McCarthy as Giggling Secretary
  • C.H. Evans as Jack at Hap's
  • Paige Bennett as French Girl at Hap's
  • G. Kenneth Davidson as Old Guy at Hap's
  • Ingrid Brucato as Curious Woman
  • Chuck McQuary as Medic
  • Margaret Adams as Fat Trout Neighbor
  • Carlton Lee Russell as Jumping Man
  • Calvin Lockhart as The Electrician
  • Jonathan J. Leppell as Mrs. Tremond's Grandson
  • David Brisbin as Second Woodsman
  • Andrea Hays as Heidi
  • Julee Cruise as Roadhouse Singer
  • Steven Hodges as Band at Roadhouse
  • William Ungerman as Band at Roadhouse
  • Joseph 'Simon' Szeibert as Band at Roadhouse
  • Smokey Hormel as Band at Roadhouse
  • Joseph L. Altruda as Band at Roadhouse
  • James Parks as Service Station Mechanic
  • Jane Jones as School Teacher
  • Karin Robison as Angel in Train Car
  • Lorna MacMillan as Angel in Red Room
  • Philip Anagnos as Student (uncredited)
  • Anne Gaybis as Dancer on Stage in 'Pink Room' (uncredited)
  • John Nelson as Double R Diner Customer (uncredited)
  • Simon Shelton as Walter Ed Pekarek (Uncredited)

Who talks, scene by scene

Lines of dialogue in every 3 scenes, start to finish. Women above the line, men below. 16% of lines come from characters we couldn't match to the cast list and aren't shown.

Women

Men

Scene 1 Scene 132

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 300
4 to 6127
7 to 9023
10 to 12917
13 to 15035
16 to 18019
19 to 21010
22 to 2402
25 to 2700
28 to 30019
31 to 33171
34 to 3633
37 to 39123
40 to 42114
43 to 4573
46 to 4875
49 to 5100
52 to 5440
55 to 57209
58 to 60139
61 to 6302
64 to 6680
67 to 69100
70 to 7222
73 to 751711
76 to 7874
79 to 811010
82 to 8454
85 to 8724
88 to 9016
91 to 9302
94 to 96413
97 to 9923
100 to 10230
103 to 10510
106 to 10850
109 to 11178
112 to 11440
115 to 117137
118 to 12001
121 to 12311
124 to 12621
127 to 12902
130 to 13216

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.
LAURA EEE: No, it doesn't... just kiss me. “pe te it does matter. We're in love. aaa You're not a turkey. A turkey is one of the dumbest birds -on eart… LAURA: Gobble, gobble, gobble.
LAURA: Can | take the car? ees SARAH EE: Sure honey, what's the hurry? BBN | forgot my books at school. ere cana Laura runs from the house. eis Laura. _ LAURA FES: What? ce Laura looks back to see her mom dangling the car keys in front of her, Laura comes back to get the keys still holding the burning c…
SARAH: Hyogelig a mote dem. Jeg Heter Saran Palmer. LAURA: pyygelg a mote dem. Jeg Heter Laura . almer
NORMA: Shelly, would you give Laura a quick hand with the "Meals on Wheels’ SHELLY: I'm kind of busy, Norma. - You're not busy, sweetheart, now go. Peri oeae
SARAH: Laura? SARAH: Laura, now | can't find that blue sweater. Did you take it again? LAURA: Mom... what are you wearing? SARAH OT: My god, | am going to have another breakdown. God, god. Poe. LAURA watt Mom, take it easy. : ae

Exhibit B: every 100 lines

Out of every 100 lines with a known speaker, 43 are women's.

209 lines from women, 276 from men.

  • Women
  • Men

Exhibit C: who's in it

15 women and 32 men in the cast. 34 women and 50 men from it get lines.

Characters

With lines

  • Women
  • Men

Exhibit D: who gets heard

The first woman speaks at line 8 of 576. The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 98 lines.

Every line of dialogue, first to last

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

Words spoken

Women speak 40% of the words (3,101), men 60% (4,682). Women have 43% 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

Exhibit F: behind the camera

4 of the 11 people in these jobs are women. Across the whole crew, 19% of the people whose gender is listed are women.

Directed by
David Lynch (man)
Written by
David Lynch (man), Robert Engels (man)
Produced by
Gregg Fienberg (man)
Shot by
Ronald Víctor García (man)
Edited by
Mary Sweeney (woman)
Music by
Angelo Badalamenti (man)
Production design by
Patricia Norris (woman)
Costumes by
Patricia Norris (woman)
Cast by
Johanna Ray (woman), Heidi Walker (gender not listed)

The crew, department by department

  • Sound

    0 women, 20 men, 21 not listed

  • Other crew

    2 women, 8 men, 16 not listed

  • Camera

    0 women, 8 men, 6 not listed

  • Production

    4 women, 5 men, 5 not listed

  • Art

    2 women, 1 men, 8 not listed

  • Lighting

    0 women, 2 men, 7 not listed

  • Costume & Make-Up

    2 women, 0 men, 4 not listed

  • Writing

    0 women, 6 men

  • Women
  • Men
  • Gender not listed on TMDB

Exhibit G: how old the stars were

Women: 24 on average. Men: 36 on average. The top-billed cast, at the film's release.

Women

Mädchen Amick 21, Heather Graham 22, Sheryl Lee 25, Phoebe Augustine 25, Pamela Gidley 26

Men

Dana Ashbrook 25, Eric DaRe 27, Miguel Ferrer 37, Ray Wise 44, David Bowie 45

Exhibit H: the money

It made 42% of what it cost.

Budget
$10 million
Box office
$4.2 million

From TMDB, not adjusted for inflation.

About this analysis

Our parser read the script: 132 scenes and 576 lines of dialogue. The bechdeltest.com rating comes from that site’s readers. How the test works

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