Before I get started, I want to give a huge thank you to SFFWorld for letting me do a guest post on their site. It’s always an honor when someone else lets you write for their blog.
For those of you who have read the title and are wondering What the heck is Bechdel and Mako Mori, let me clear it up for you:
The Bechdel Test is a three-step formula that’s often used as a baseline for determining whether or not a movie can be categorized as feminist, or at least not horribly misogynistic. When you watch a movie, you ask yourself three questions:
1. Are there at least two women in this movie?
2. Do they talk to each other?
3. Do they talk about something other than a man?
If the movie can answer “yes” to all three questions, then congrats! It’s officially passed the Bechdel Test.
Believe or not, most movies fail. Toy Story 2 doesn’t make the cut. You could argue that Mulan doesn’t either. And all but one Harry Potter movie fails. And even when a movie does pass the Bechdel Test, a lot of times it’s still demeaning to women. Case in point: Twilight and 50 Shades of Grey.
That’s where the Mako Mori Test comes in. It was named after the character in the first Pacific Rim movie. To pass, a movie must:
1. Have at least one woman character…
2. …who has her own narrative arc…
3. …that does not revolve around a man.
Mako Mori from Pacific Rim is a woman whose story revolves around fighting giant aliens in giant robots. She happens to fall in love with the main (male) lead, but that’s not the center of her story. Her story is about whooping alien ass.
The Mako Mori Test is far better at determining whether or not a movie is pro-woman and not sexist. It’s not perfect. Many argue that Twilight and 50 Shades pass the Mako Mori Test as well, even though both of them are just…horrible. Nevertheless, I’ve found that applying both tests to a movie gets the best results.
Here is my list of personal favorite movies in the sci-fi/fantasy genres that pass both tests. If you think I’ve missed something or think, Why the heck do you think that’s a good movie? then please let us know in the comments.
These movies are arranged in order of rating. If you have young kids and you’re looking to give them a healthy dose of girl power, stick to the top of the list.
PG/G
The Princess and the Frog
Coco (Pixar)
Tangled
Frozen
The Incredibles
Who else is psyched up for the sequel in June? 😀
Inside Out
Spirited Away
This is my favorite anime movie. My favorite anime show is Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, which also passes both Bechdel and Mako Mori.
PG-13
Star Wars: the Force Awakens and Star Wars: the Last Jedi
I will never understand the hate for these two movies. They are an amazing addition to the franchise and I cannot wait for Episode IX.
Wonder Woman
Obviously.
Black Panther
If you haven’t seen this movie yet, close your laptop, go to the theater, and buy a ticket.
Mad Max: Fury Road
Arrival
The Martian
This one is open for debate. The movie centers around Mark Watney, who is stuck on Mars. Naturally, about 90% of the conversations are about him. There is one conversation between his crew of five–which include two women–where they’re talking about mutiny. That passes Bechdel. The question is whether or not it passes the Mako Mori Test. I would argue that it does, to a certain extent. Commander Lewis has to deal with the guilt of leaving Mark behind on Mars, whether or not she should risk the lives of her remaining crew to get him back, and ultimately decides No, I’m just going to risk my life to get him back. But that’s relegated to the background. Like, waaaay back.
Rated R
Dredd (2012)
The Cabin in the Woods
Lights Out
Alien saga
The Thing (2011 prequel)
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The problem with such narrow criteria is that they miss out on the real classics of SFF including 2001: A Space Odyssey, Blade Runner, and Lord of the Rings which don’t appear on the above list. Most of the movies listed above are passable (Spirited Away and The Incredibles are admittedly terrific) but don’t rank with the classics mentioned here. Diversity is great but I prefer quality content over a series of movies that pass certain narrow tests. If they have both that’s also fine, but I pick great plot over everything else.