Starring Felicity Jones and Armie Hammer, On the Basis of Sex brilliantly tells the story of how Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (RBG) earned her wings. It was fun and otherworldly to see RBG before she was the RBG. Watching her on the Supreme Court, she is so untouchable and influential, it’s hard to imagine her as young and insecure as she used to be. The story opens with Ruth and her husband Marty attending Harvard law, Ruth as one of the nine female law students. The institutional sexism of the time is blatant and unapologetic, something Ruth sets her heart to changing.

You can’t help but cheer for Ruth through her journey, but I found the most endearing character to be Marty Ginsburg. Despite the universal sexism of the time, Marty supported and encouraged Ruth to achieve her potential. Through his own struggles, Marty was present as a father and husband, a little-seen quality in most of the era’s men. I was impressed by Armie Hammer’s earnest and compassionate portrayal of RBG’s partner. Marty was the perfect man to stand by Ruth’s side and urge her to reach for the stars, a performance that brought tears to my eyes.

For anyone who is interested in politics or current events (or a cool story!) I would definitely take the time to see this movie. For a personal vibe, I’d recommend seeing it before it closes at the San Marco Theatre.

Image courtesy of Wikipedia Commons.