An apparatus for measuring the penetration depth of a blunt object before failure of a film sample, such as a glove. Failure occurs when a film sample secured to a column ruptures from the force applied by a stylus. The penetration depth of the blunt object is equal to the distance traveled by the stylus under the method of the invention. With the measurement of the penetration depth and the force applied by the stylus, a quantitative measurement of the rupture strength of the film sample is obtained.