The movie 9 to 5 (Colin Higgins, 1980) is perhaps the gold standard of female-led comedies. With its iconic theme song, all-star cast, and feminist message, it remains a classic more than 40 years after its initial release. Now in their new documentary, Still Working 9 to 5, directors Camille Hardman and Gary Lane take a look at how far we have (or haven’t) come since then.

Still Working 9 to 5 is a very ambitious film, with a top-drawer cast including Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno and Lily Tomlin. It is at once a making-of film, a feminist history, and a pro-Equal Rights Amendment propaganda piece. These different goals never quite gel, and the result is a film of two halves.

The first half is focused on 9 to 5’s inception and is by far the most cohesive. The expected talking heads are brought together in order to discuss how the film came to be, and while the story of overcoming studio opposition is a documentary staple, what makes this one interesting is the oft-forgotten fact 9 to 5 has genuinely radical roots. The idea for the premise came after Jane Fonda became involved in the real 9 to 5 movement, founded in 1973 with the objective of improving women’s working conditions. One of her key goals in 9 to 5 was to incorporate actual demands brought forth by female office workers and therefore to amplify their voices. Having such well-known feminists as Fonda and 9to5 founding member Karen Nussbaum there to situate 9 to 5 in the context of second-wave feminism is one of the real strengths of Still Working 9 to 5, transforming it from a generic retrospective into an educational social history.

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The second half of Still Working 9 to 5 loses some of the depth that characterised the first half. Suddenly, we are catapulted into the modern day where the 9 to 5 stage musical is shoehorned into the discussion under the justification of its relevance in the 21st century. Unlike in the case of the 9 to 5 television show, no attention is given to any adaptational differences, so it ends up feeling like an advertisement. The movie briefly touches on the #MeToo movement, yet it rushes over sexual harassment experienced by the leads in 9 to 5. This jumping from topic to topic continues for the final half hour, so that it is more akin to a checklist than a documentary.

The narrative is glued together by the ongoing campaign for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). This is directly relevant as part of the context in which 9 to 5 was made, and the ERA’s failure is, at first, given the time and gravity it deserves. The topic is then dropped and only picked up again at the very end, as if suddenly remembered at the last moment. Were it better structured, Still Working 9 to 5 could have made a much more powerful argument for the ERA.

The film is dotted with hard-hitting moments, such as when feminist activist Zoe Nicholson describes the experience of having to tell young girls that they are not in the Constitution of the United States. It perhaps betrays my own ignorance that I was unaware before watching this that the ERA was never ratified, but it also goes to show the necessity of a documentary like this one. Despite its jarring structure and overly wide scope, Still Working 9 to 5 ultimately illustrates just how imperative it is to carry on the fights for equal pay and legal rights that our feminist forebears began in the 1970s.

Still Working 9 to 5 premieres at the 10th Doc’n Roll Film Festival. Just click here for more information.