RBG (PG.)
Directed by Julie Cohen, Betsy West.
Featuring Ruth Bader Ginsberg. 98 mins.
Of all the rank falsehoods that the cinema has pushed, the most egregious is that the law, and lawyers, are exciting and sexy. This is a herography of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a pioneering lawyer who fought many vital sex equality cases in the States in the 70s and 80s before being appointed to the Supreme Court by Clinton in 1993. Now the frail-looking but robust 85-year-old has become a pop culture icon, inspiring memes, being impersonated by Kate McKinnon on Saturday Night Live and having her own rap name, Notorious RBG.
And that's all very jazzy but it doesn't cover up that most of her story is about a lot of top quality, paperwork. She made history but there's only so much interest you can build on her finding a really nifty precedent. She is a remarkable figure but that strong will can be counter productive: because she chose not to retire when Obama could've named a liberal replacement, she now has to outlive the Trump presidency to stop him getting the opportunity to nominate another really great guy to the Court.
She may well be an inspiration to a younger generation but when that translates into young women gushing “I've got a mug of her,” “I have a sticker on my computer.” “I've just ordered tonnes of merch.” you may wonder if her example is going to be quite enough to generate an effective opposition to the wave of fascist crankdom that is sweeping the world.
At the end, Jennifer Hudson sings an uplifting song about her.
Directed by Julie Cohen, Betsy West.
Featuring Ruth Bader Ginsberg. 98 mins.
Of all the rank falsehoods that the cinema has pushed, the most egregious is that the law, and lawyers, are exciting and sexy. This is a herography of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a pioneering lawyer who fought many vital sex equality cases in the States in the 70s and 80s before being appointed to the Supreme Court by Clinton in 1993. Now the frail-looking but robust 85-year-old has become a pop culture icon, inspiring memes, being impersonated by Kate McKinnon on Saturday Night Live and having her own rap name, Notorious RBG.
And that's all very jazzy but it doesn't cover up that most of her story is about a lot of top quality, paperwork. She made history but there's only so much interest you can build on her finding a really nifty precedent. She is a remarkable figure but that strong will can be counter productive: because she chose not to retire when Obama could've named a liberal replacement, she now has to outlive the Trump presidency to stop him getting the opportunity to nominate another really great guy to the Court.
She may well be an inspiration to a younger generation but when that translates into young women gushing “I've got a mug of her,” “I have a sticker on my computer.” “I've just ordered tonnes of merch.” you may wonder if her example is going to be quite enough to generate an effective opposition to the wave of fascist crankdom that is sweeping the world.
At the end, Jennifer Hudson sings an uplifting song about her.
