By JASON GUYER
iRate
Art can inspire. Cinema can inspire, but few things in life are more inspirational than people. There are many types of true stories that get turned into films or even books and there is one kind that stands above the rest. The inspirational true story is one of the best.
Different people and different true stories inspire different people though. One of the most inspiring stories on film I have seen in the last 10 years was “Secretariat.” “Secretariat” is about one of the greatest racing horses of all time; he holds the record for largest margin of victory, an unfathomable 31 lengths. Others may not find the film all that inspiring since it is about a horse.
“Secretariat” came out in 2010, and since then I have seen hundreds of films. Some of those films were good and were meant to be inspiring, but they were not, and some were inspiring stories but were not great films.
“On the Basis of Sex” is one of the best and most inspiring stories I have seen since “Secretariat.”
Although the two films could not be more different or on subject matter that could be any more different, both films are inspirational.
One, “On the Basis of Sex,” is just far more important than the other one. 2019 seems to be continuing the trend of socially important films that 2018 had seen a rise in.
“On the Basis of Sex” tells the real life story of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Ginsburg is a struggling attorney and new mother at the start of “On the Basis of Sex.” When her husband, attorney Martin Ginsburg, suggests taking on a groundbreaking tax case, they both know it could change the way the courts view gender discrimination.
In “On the Basis of Sex” Ginsburg faces adversity and numerous obstacles in her fight for equal rights. Felicity Jones and Armie Hammer play Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Martin Ginsburg. Felicity Jones is captivating as Ruth and from watching the documentary “RBG,” one can tell that Jones does a commendable job as Ginsburg. Jones captures character growth on screen.
Subtly acting out character growth is harder for an actor than it is to just have the story write in something that expresses character growth. “On the Basis of Sex” has both.
There are moments that are used to express character growth, but there are many more where Jones’ Ginsburg is seemingly thinking and smart enough to grow in the moment that it is needed.
One scene captivates this more than any other, the ending court scene, where Ruth is seemingly losing the court case of Moritz v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue. Now, the more important Ginsburg case and the more groundbreaking case is Reed v. Reed, but “On the Basis of Sex” uses Moritz v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue as a necessary step to Reed v. Reed.
As with most biopics, there is a fine line between historically accurate and drama-based accuracy. “On the Basis of Sex” is accurate but does fudge smaller things for dramatic effect. One big one is her daughter Jane, who in “On the Basis of Sex” works closely on the case with her mother and that is false. Jane in “On the Basis of Sex” served as a consolidation of multiple people in Ginsberg’s life into one film character.
The other big one is the rebuttal scene. Contextually everything that Jones’ Ginsburg says in the rebuttal scene is true to the context of Ginsburg’s argument, but there was never a rebuttal. Yes, the judges asked her to speak longer than her allotted time as they did in the rebuttal scene, but there was no saving her time for a rebuttal to compose herself after seemingly losing her argument only to rally back in rebuttal to win. In “On the Basis of Sex” this is used as dramatic effect and is very common in film.
Felicity Jones may be the star in “On the Basis of Sex” but the real star is Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The story of Ruth Bader Ginsburg is the real star in this film. “On the Basis of Sex” tells the wonderfully inspiring and true story of a truly inspirational woman, one who history will look upon favorably and who fought for something people are unfortunately still fighting for today, equality. Even, Ruth Bader Ginsburg herself at 85.
To be honest though, as inspirational as I found “On the Basis of Sex” there is one giant downside that many will dislike. “On the Basis of Sex” is a very verbal film. It is a verbal film about very dry material. Verbally, the law can be stuffy and boring to many, and the film may lose people because of it. I went the opposite direction. The subject matter is socially and historically important, therefore it is interesting. But if someone looking to be entertained at the movies, this verbal barrage of law and the explanation of said laws could lead to a dislike of the film. One man’s inspiration or entertainment is another’s boredom.
Inspiring films are always worth the watch of they accomplish what they set out to do, Inspire. “On the Basis of Sex” is no inspiration in filmmaking and for a film it is pretty straight forward, but “On the Basis of Sex” is an inspiring film. Felicity Jones inspires as Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Ruth Bader Ginsburg is inspiring historically.
Most importantly, no matter the medium (art, film) or the people involved, there is no more inspiring story in human history than the fight for equality. Right now, in the equality fight, we may not be leading by 31 lengths, but if “On the Basis of Sex” inspires one person then the fight continues. One day the inspiring story of someone’s/everyone’s fight for equality will end as grand a win as Secretariat’s at Belmont. “On the Basis of Sex” shows all it takes is someone with a little inspiration and determination.
In my opinion, “On the Basis of Sex” inspires and for this film that is a win.
IRATE SCORE: 3/5
Jason Guyer is an avid moviegoer and works in the graphics department at the Eagle Times. For questions or comments he can be emailed at [email protected]
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