The Hunger Games

Looks like there's about to be a song, but it's not that kind of teen movie...

The Bechdel Test goes as follows:
It Has to Have Two Named Women:
Katniss, Prim, Rue, Effy
Who Talk to each other:
All of these characters interact with Katniss at some point in the film for over 30 seconds.
About something besides a man:
Done. Katniss's life is on the line, she's not trying to get in on some heterosexual love... but somehow, I'm sure it'll sneak up on her anyway. Katniss and Rue spend time developing a friendship and plan. Katniss and Prim discuss the reaping, as well as a tearful goodbye. Effy gives advice and silly "let them eat cake" style conversation, and Katniss gives her mother some tough love. There are conversations about men, but they don't dominate every conversation.

I wouldn't blame her for talking about this guy, though. He's lovely.

Right off the bat, The Hunger Games passes the Bechdel test. Katniss Everdeen is seen having conversations with her mother, her sister, an ally, and her handler, all based around her survival in the games, despite having a love interest involved. What I found particularly interesting about the film and it's relation to gender difference was that it does place a considerable amount of Katniss's success on her own shoulders, complete with her team. However, what ends up setting her ahead of her competitors seems to be the discovery of, or the illusion of heterosexual love. 

With this guy, and his flawless logic.

While Katniss is resourceful, and brave, and ultimately is the heroine of the story, her edge in the games really comes through after Peeta confesses his feelings during his interview. She's of course blindsided, because as a sixteen year old girl, she's never considered her feelings on love, sex, and relationships with anyone. Also, she's got 23 other kids trying to take her out. She's a little busy. When she is in the woods, toward the end of the games, she teams up with Peeta, and ultimately they both live because of her intelligence. However, without Peeta, it is unlikely Katniss would have survived on her own. His love story won her favor with sponsors, and Peeta saved her from the Career team. 

Still can't save her like hetero love can!

In many popular young adult novels adapted into film, there’s usually some kind of heterosexual love interest. Katniss doesn’t follow the same pattern as Twilight’s Bella. Bella's love interest spends their story trying to convince her why she shouldn't give in to her feelings, while at the same time nurturing dependence and a relationship. Katniss is a different formula, and is the secondary storyline to her survival. She doesn’t fall head over heels for Peeta, she doesn’t spend the film consumed by her love interest, though she is obviously torn between her best friend and her team mate. Peeta spends his time trying to convince her to fall in love. Katniss needs to be tricked into love and sex, because she is naive and pure, as women should be. In Twilight, Edward saves Bella from a speeding car, and in Hunger Games Peeta saves Katniss from starvation as well as from violent interaction with other players. Edward and Bella cannot be together until everything around their unholy union is resolved (something about a vampire war? I don't remember). Ultimately, Katniss cannot commit to Peeta as they are embroiled in a game for their lives, but by the end of the series, she is bound to choose a mate as the turmoil dies down and a new age of peace starts. 

I've lived the story on the right, why would I pay to watch it?

Credits

That's real talk.

Hunger Games
Gale
Peeta
Skills
Katniss vs. Bella
ECards