Though it’s definitely not as powerful as its real-life counterpart, On the Basis of Sex still effectively backhands you with dismissive sexism — some used for comedic effect, others to reinforce social injustice — and leaves a burning sting of inspiration that sticks with you after the credits roll. It’s a film with an important message, and it feels comfortably at home in our current milieu. After all, a Court must be aware of the climate of the era, not the weather of the day when making their ruling, which is a sentiment On the Basis of Sex securely fastens to its lapel like one of RBG’s many brooches.

The film opens in the late 50s to a sea suit coats and dress shoes in soft focus, as they shuffle like cattle toward one of Harvard’s auditoriums. As these faceless figures slowly twist further and further into blurred figures, a young RBG emerges in crisp focus as she navigates herself through this densely packed crowd of men toward her orientation, where we learn that she’s one of nine women in a class of about 500 men. It’s a pretty strong visual metaphor that perfectly sets the stage for the remainder of the film, and once the opening credits finish up, we are quickly presented with a lot of disparaging sexist comments that fuel RBG’s drive for gender equality. One particularly humous and infuriating example early on involves the Dean of Harvard Law holding a dinner just for the nine women wherein he has the audacity to ask, "How do you justify taking a spot from a qualified man?"