Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was one of the single greatest individuals that the world has known in modern history. The lasting impact she has had on not only women’s rights, but human rights in general, is frankly immeasurable. The late Supreme Court Justice lived a life worthy of exploration up until her heartbreaking passing this past September. While she has been racking up accomplishments since the mid-twentieth century, it was not until the past decade that she became something of a cultural icon – the Notorious RBG. The past several years have seen the release of a highly successful documentary and a pretty great narrative depiction starring Felicity Jones. This one-two punch gave audiences a pretty solid foundation on which to heap due adoration on this incredible woman, but there are always further nuances to explore. Freida Lee Mock’s Ruth – Justice Ginsburg In Her Own Words has been floating around the festival circuit since 2019, and it unfortunately suffers from a case of “late to the party” now that it has finally been released. The subject of the documentary remains as fascinating as ever, but the execution leaves it feeling like a not-as-good version of RBG.
Let’s be clear, this is not a bad documentary by any stretch of the imagination. The film consists mostly of archival footage that allows Ginsburg to share the most important parts of her life with the audience. It poses the question of how this woman with “three strikes against her” – being a woman, Jewish and a working mom – was able to secure a place with the highest court in our country. One of the most effective ways she shares information is through a visiting group of 5th graders who ask her the type of “to the point” questions that allows Ginsburg to speak at length. She speaks about cases that affected her the most and the difficulties of being a woman in a male-dominated field, but she also gets a chance to share personal details about her family that reminds you of the person behind the almost mythic narrative behind her. Those who have watched RBG or On the Basis of Sex will not find a wealth of new material included here, but there are enough moments that those who really love Ginsburg will want to watch regardless.
While the archival footage is not exactly breaking new ground, there are some new interviews with people from her life that stand as the best aspects of the movie. Justice Goodwin Liu, a former clerk for Ginsburg and a present-day Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court, shares stories of how Ginsburg took the time to shepherd him through his career even at her busiest. Lilly Ledbetter also brings some much needed energy to the film with her account of Ginsburg’s historic dissenting opinion after she lost her employment discrimination case. There is nothing wrong with the information in the film itself; the biggest issue with the film is how dated it feels being released after the death of Ginsburg. The film even goes as far to have a portion dedicated to how great her health was while playfully musing that she probably has many years ahead of her. The lone acknowledgement of her passing is an “In Memoriam” card before the credits start rolling. When your subject passes away, you really should take some extra time to shape your movie to address the fact and explore the ramifications.
Ruth – Justice Ginsburg In Her Own Words would be considered a pretty great documentary if RBG and On the Basis of Sex did not exist, but the excellence of those projects leaves this one feeling a bit superfluous to all but the most ardent Ginsburg supporters.
Video Quality
Ruth – Justice Ginsburg In Her Own Words comes to DVD with a decent if not unspectacular 480p transfer that suits the movie well enough. This project is primarily composed of archival footage with talking head interviews interspersed throughout, which provides different levels of visual quality. The more recent interviews obviously look noticeably better than inconsistent archival footage, as much of the footage from the 90s and earlier has really chunky macroblocking that is quite ugly. Skin tones look natural and details hold up fairly well in the new interviews. Colors are a bit flat and black levels are subject to crush and compression artifacting. The image is a bit soft throughout with noticeable haziness around the information on the interview subjects. This film is visually not a knockout, but it gets the information across that it needs to in a serviceable way considering the quality of the source elements. .
Audio Quality
The DVD comes with both a Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 track that does everything it needs to do well. Dialogue is pretty consistently clear throughout with only occasional moments where sounds from the clips muddle the clarity of the subject’s words. Surround speakers add a bit of texture to the proceedings, mostly in the form of musical cues. This track appears to be free from any damage or other issues that would lessen your enjoyment. This presentation is about as good as the source material will allow.
Special Features
- Trailers: The two-minute theatrical trailer for Ruth is provided here. There are also trailers for 7 Yards, Maybe Next Year, Michael Smerconish: Things I Wish I Knew Before I Started Talking, Nasrin and Trafficked: A Parent’s Worst Nightmare.
Final Thoughts
Ruth – Justice Ginsburg In Her Own Words is a serviceable documentary of one of the great crusaders of equality. Freida Lee Mock has assembled some compelling archival footage that gives you some insight into her life, but the new interviews with those whose lives she affected is the biggest draw for those who have devoured previous Ginsburg-focused content. Kino Lorber and Virgil Films have released a DVD with decent enough A/V quality, but pretty much nothing in the special features department. Recommended for die hard fans of Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Ruth – Justice Ginsburg In Her Own Words will be available to purchase on DVD on March 9, 2021.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the DVD.
Disclaimer: Kino Lorber and Virgil Films have supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
