Oppenheimer is once again trending on social media, but this time it’s because it fails the Bechdel Test. Here’s how the record-breaking movie fails the Bechdel Test.
How Oppenheimer fails the Bechdel Test
Also known as the “Bechdel-Wallace Test,” “Bechdel Rule,” or “Mo Movie Measure,” the Bechdel Test assesses Oppenheimer on three parameters:
- Whether there are at least two women in the film.
- Whether they talk to each other.
- Whether they talk about something besides a man.
In a movie like Oppenheimer that packs an all-star cast and an intricate narrative, one would think that it would pass such a simple test. But surprisingly, the thriller biopic fails the test in the last two parameters as it doesn’t have any scenes to tick those boxes.
Applying the Bechdel test on Oppenheimer delivers the following results:
- Are there 2 or more women in the movie?
- Yes. Katherine Kitty Oppenheimer, Jean Tatlock, and more.
- Do Kitty Oppenheimer and Jean Tatlock or other women in the film talk to each other?
- No, not in any scene of significance.
- Does the movie have two women talking about anything besides a man?
- No.
And that’s how Oppenheimer fails the Bechdel Test.
Oppenheimer’s plot and cast
Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer follows the story of Robert J. Oppenheimer, whose unparalleled contributions to the Manhattan Project led to the creation of the Atomic Bomb. The film also dives deeper into its consequences and also showcases a conspiracy against the popular theoretical physicist.
It stars Cillian Murphy as the titular character. Others involved are Emily Blunt as Kitty Oppenheimer, Matt Damon as Leslie Groves, Robert Downey Jr. as Lewis Strauss, Florence Pugh as Jean Tatlock, Josh Hartnett as Ernest Lawrence, Casey Affleck as Boris Pash, Rami Malek as David Hill, and Kenneth Branagh as Niels Bohr.
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