I have loved this movie since I was 8 years old, and I am very happy to announce that it passed the Bechdel test – just barely - but it passed!! Number 1: there are three major female roles, including the main character. Number 2: they do speak to each other. Number 3: there is one conversation between two of the women in which a man is not mentioned:
Margaret: “I’m here, I’m comin’. Start out an hour early, I always end up half hour late.”
Viola: “Okay, what can I do to help?”
Margaret: “Want to get the cards on top of the chest of drawers? That [dish] looks good. “
And that was it. The saving grace of the movie! I was actually surprised that it passed. It is set in Waxahachie, Texas during the great depression and tells the story of Edna Sterling, a housewife and mother whose husband is accidentally killed. When her husband dies, she must find a way to pay her mortgage and keep her home and children, a nearly impossible task for a woman alone in the 1930’s. Because Edna was so alone in her struggle, I expected Places in the Heart to fail the Bechdel test.
Most conversations between Edna and the other women involve her husband, which is to be expected. The above conversation was between Edna’s sister Margaret, and Margaret’s best friend, Viola, both of whom play a large role in the film. All three ladies are middle class. They wear typical 1930’s dresses, cardigans, aprons, stockings, and sturdy, low-heeled shoes - nice dresses, jewelry, heels, and makeup for dances and such. Their outfits are always tasteful and modest. The hemlines fell below their knees and the necklines can still be called necklines – again typical 1930’s fashion.
Despite the modest apparel, however, the movie still shows each woman in some manner of undress: Viola in a chemise, Margaret in her bra and underpants, and Edna nude. The scenes with Viola and Margaret are somewhat understandable as they involved romantic escapades pertinent to the story. Edna’s bath scene, on the other hand, does absolutely nothing to enhance the plot. It was obviously contrived and really has no business being in the film. I guess if the lead had to be a woman, she had to get naked to make up for it. It's absolutely infuriating! Even one of the movie posters shows Edna with her clothes plastered to her body in the wind. SEE?!?
There is NO reason to sexualize this character at all, but apparently someone thought it had to be done...
...jerks...
Other than that, this is an incredible movie, and I recommend everyone see it. The women are all believable. Viola is depressed and unhappy, which leads her to be jealous of her friend’s happiness. Margaret is likable, both light-hearted and dependable and always right where she is needed most. Edna is easily the best character. She is sweet-tempered and loving, but also courageous and indomitable. Even when she is reduced to tears and can barely put one foot in front of the other, she never stops working to keep her family together. What makes her truly remarkable, though, is that through all of her hardships, she herself never becomes hardened. Most female leads “man up” in order to overcome adversity, but Edna never thinks or acts like a man. Instead she acknowledges the challenges before her, accepts them, and meets each one with grace and unwavering determination. She faces them not like a man, but like a woman.
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