Supporting role

Now here's an interesting proposal from Sweden to help address the gender imbalance on the silver screen: the Bechdel test, according to which a film "must have at least two named female characters who talk to each other about something other than a man". While this is a form of positive discrimination (with all the pros and cons that entails) and Hynek Pallas points out other flaws in the article, it's nevertheless a useful tool in principle - and one which reveals in stark terms the extent of the imbalance.

(Thanks to Zoe for the link.)