RBG is the affectionate and enlightening biodoc about US Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The challenge, of course, is in making such a famously stonefaced 84-year-old subject relatable. RBG pulls that off by hearing from Ginsburg’s family and childhood friends, and by showing her reaction to the “Notorious RPG” meme and to her portrayals on SNL.
Most importantly, RBG traces her longtime marriage to her late husband Marty, an affable extrovert with a zany sense of humor. He was a highly accomplished lawyer in his own right but, unusual for his generation, was also a man who embraced his wife’s career goals surpassing his own.
This is an exciting movie for a legal geek (like me). RBG documents Ginsburg’s role as the leading legal strategist for women’s rights, carefully picking the factual bases and the sequence of cases heading to the Supreme Court. It appears that Ginsburg really has only Thurgood Marshall as a peer in orchestrating the progress of a major civil rights movement.
Unfortunately that makes Ginsburg’s dissents in the regressive decisions of Roberts Court (Bush v Gore, Hobby Lobby, Shelby) all the more sobering.
That being said, what is impressive (and reassuring) is that RBG shows Ginsburg working out at the gym – she can hold a plank longer than I can hold mug of beer.
I must note that RBG is outright reverential – but why not? Ginsburg deserves it.