‘Still Working 9 to 5’ is an enlightening, informative, and entertaining reminder that there’s still work to do.
9 to 5 was released on Dec. 19, 1980. As a Christmas release that wasn’t a Christmas movie and featured three female leads — sardonic stand-up comedian Lily Tomlin, controversial activist/actor Jane Fonda, and a rising country singer and newbie actress named Dolly Parton — the odds seemed stacked against it. But, the feel good movie became a surprise box office hit that year second only to The Empire Strikes Back. Still Working 9 to 5, a new documentary directed by Camille Hardman and Gary Lane, examines the comedy’s lasting cultural impact over forty years later.
The documentary kicks off with a cold open. Archival footage shows Fonda, one of the original film’s main producers, on a chat show describing 9 to 5 as “a movie about secretaries fantasizing about murdering their boss.” The host sitting opposite her blankly follows up with “so, it’s not a political statement is it?” Fonda’s face doesn’t give much away in the moment but this documentary — partly expository and partly reflective “making-of” — answers the question in the affirmative. Yes, 9 to 5 was intended to be a political statement, and as the documentary proves, a lasting one.
