Harry Potter,Star Wars,Social Network fail new feminist rating in Sweden

The entire Lord of the Rings trilogy,all Star Wars movies,The Social Network, Pulp Fiction and all but one of the Harry Potter movies fail this test, said Ellen Tejle,the director of Bio Rio,an art-house movie theater in Stockholms trendy Sodermalm district.

Bio Rio is one of four Swedish movie theaters that launched the new rating last month to draw attention to how few movies pass. Most visitors have reacted positively to the initiative and for some people it has been an eye-opener, said Tejle.

Beliefs about womens roles in society are influenced by the fact that movie watchers rarely see a female superhero or a female professor or person who makes it through exciting challenges and masters them, Tejle said. The goal is to see more female stories and perspectives on screens.

The state-funded Swedish Film Institute supports the initiative,which is starting to catch on. Scandinavian cable TV channel Viasat Film says it will start using the ratings in its film reviews. It is the latest Swedish move to promote gender equality by addressing how women are portrayed in the public sphere.