Summer Movies: Vicky Cristina Barcelona

The “Dykes to Watch Out For” test, formerly coined as the “Mo Movie Measure” test and Bechdel Test, was named for the comic strip it came from, penned by Alison Bechdel – but Bechdel credits a friend named Liz Wallace, so maybe it really should be called the Liz Wallace Test…? Anyway, the test is much simpler than the name. To pass it your movie must have the following:

1) there are at least two named female characters, who

2) talk to each other about

3) something other than a man

Vicky Cristina Barcelona fails this test in the most frustrating way possible. Occasionally, the female characters do have conversations about life and art and architecture. We know this because the omnipresent narrator describes what they are talking about, rather than let Vicky, Cristina, or María Elena actually speak directly to each other. When they do speak to each other, they are talking about men.

Sigh.

The rest of the movie meanders on, the plot comes to a close, nothing is really resolved, everything ends pretty much as it began. It was a fairly enjoyable summer movie, one that is light in tone and easy to watch, made even better by walking down the street and grabbing some sangria afterwards. Yet, it wasn’t remarkable. And the characters weren’t very novel, paper thin representations of a certain type of womanhood and middle/upper class anxiety.

However, if we were instead watching María Elena’s life – complete with suicide attempts, frustration in art, two volatile love affairs, and a penchant for paint and firearms – I think I would have been more intrigued.

(Note: The title of this post reflects when I started writing it – in August. Oy…)

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