On the Basis of Sex movie review

RATING: PG-13

LENGTH: 2 hours

Movie Review Mom GRADE: B

IN A NUTSHELL: While I really enjoyed this movie, On the Basis of Sex , my twin sister actually fell asleep and was bored. The most action in this biopic is watching people type really fast. Ha ha And yet, what Ruth Bader Ginsberg did for this country was monumental. What an amazing, persistent, determined woman. One thing my sister pointed out that, while Ruth was zealous, she rarely smiled and didn’t seem to have joy in her life. Instead, everything seemed like a battle to her. That’s not a flaw in the movie, but really due to how Ruth’s mother taught her to not “give way to emotions.”

It’s unusual to have such a great movie like On the Basis of Sex released in January. We’re off to a great start! Actually, it was on hold for many years and was supposed to hit theaters last month in December. Well, better late than never. I’m so happy that this movie was at least made while Ruth Bader Ginsberg is still alive to see it. I was interested to learn more about her and left so impressed with the kind of student, wife, and mother she was on top of the great legal mind. Fun fact: The French version of On the Basis of Sex is “Une femme d’Exception” which means “An Exceptional Woman.” RBG really is an exceptional woman.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Most kids will be bored out of their minds. Pre-teen girls and up might be especially interested.
· Some profanity, including 1 F-bomb.
· There is a LOT of legal jargon that young kids won’t understand.
· “The natural order of things” is a great topic of conversation you can have with your kids and how it relates to law and the changes we have seen and are continuing to see in America.
· Can you imagine growing up in a home with two extremely bright attorneys as your parents? In the movie, they play classical music and encourage healthy debates. What kind of children did they raise? Extremely bright ones. There’s a lesson there for all of us parents.
· Kids will get to see some great set design and props from past decades, including pay phones, typewriters, and home phones.

THEMES:

· “Reason is the soul of all law.” – words that are written in the courtroom

· “You don’t get to tell me when to quit.” – Ruth (Felicity Jones)

· Question everything.

· Change minds first. Then, the law can change.

· “A court not ought to be affected by the weather of the day but by the climate of the era.” – Harvard Professor

· “Words matter.” – Ruth

THINGS I LIKED:

Felicity Jones was absolutely perfect in this role. I’m such a fan.

I always appreciate little details. There are plenty of small moments and details, such as when the camera zooms into the back of Ruth’s legs so you can see the old-fashioned nylons she wore as a Harvard student.

I’ve always liked Armie Hammer. I thought the loving, supportive relationship between his character (Mary Ginsburg) and Ruth was so sweet.

· I was surprised to see Jack Reynor cast as an attorney, probably because I most recently saw him as a young kid in Kin as a young rebel. He won an acting award in Ireland and is, clearly, versatile and believable.

· I loved the ending when you see Ruth (Felicity Jones) walking up the stairs in that pretty blue outfit and then it switches to the real Ruth, also wearing a pretty blue outfit and that classic pin you see Felicity wear during most of the movie.

· I always love it when movies about real people show text at the end, telling you “where are they now.” I was especially curious about Jane, Ruth’s daughter.

· You’ll like the song at the end of the movie Here Comes The Change (From the Motion Picture ‘On The Basis of Sex’) The song at the beginning of the movie is the actual Harvard fight song called, 10,000 Men of Harvard

* There’s a really good scene that addresses the title of the movie On the Basis of Sex. Ruth Bader Ginsberg’s secretary finishes typing up the brief and shyly mentions that the word “sex” is all over it. She suggests to RBG that the word could be changed to “gender.” She says, “You KNOW how men are!” ha ha Whenever I talk about On the Basis of Sex to friends who don’t know what this movie is about, I can see them take a step back, as if I’m suggesting some porn movie or something. ha ha

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

· Lots of super close shots. Too close.

· Some viewers may get lost in all of the “legalese.”

It’s a bit slow-moving without any real action.

FUNNY LINES:

· “I thought she’d be bigger.” – Mortiz’s mother (Moira Wylie)

· “Correcting them will take a lifetime. I’m merely grading them.” – Snobby Harvard Professor

· “It’s not a movement if everyone is just sitting. That’s a support group.” – Jane (Cailee Spaeny)

INTERESTING LINES:

· “The word ‘woman’ does not appear once in the Constitution.” – Judge Hollowell (Ben Carlson)

“Nor does the word ‘freedom’, your Honor.” – Ruth

· “We’re not asking you to change the country. That has already happened without any law. We’re asking for the right of the country to change.” – Ruth

· “So, the judge is wrong?” – Charles Moritz (Chris Mulkey)

“Mr. Moritz, the law is wrong.” – Ruth

· “Just because you lost the battle 100 years before you started doesn’t mean you shouldn’t start.” – Jane quoting Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird

· “How a country taxes its citizens is a direct relation to its values.” – Marty (Armie Hammer)

· “Hooray for Mommy.” – Marty

· “Even small mistakes are glaring when you stick out.” – Ruth

“Well, it’s a good thing because you are very short.” – Marty

OTHER MOVIES LIKE THIS YOU MIGHT ENJOY:

RBG