First Monday in October

1981 • 98 minutes

4.7

11 reviews

46%

Tomatometer

Rating

Eligible

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About this movie

Walter Matthau and Jill Clayburgh star in this dramatic comedy that centers around the appointment of the first woman to the U.S. Supreme Court. She is aggressive, witty, magnetic-and an arch-conservative. He is wry, opinionated and roundly liberal. One hundred and one men have preceded the new female justice to seats on the bench of the nation's highest court, but now it's eight men and her. All unanimously accept their new colleague-except Matthau, "The Great Dissenter." He becomes the source of her fury, her challenges, her antagonism... and finally, her loving admiration. Matthau and Clayburgh are unforgettably and hilariously opposed in this contemporary tale that goes behind the bend with wit, wisdom and great conviction.

Rating

Ratings and reviews

4.7

11 reviews

Lisa Gulick

May 14, 2020

I remember when this movie first came out. I was in high school, and I watched it on our local cable's movie channel. I thought it was funny and heartwarming then. Now that I'm much older, I got much more out of it. I caught all the banter and the zingers, and the growing friendship and respect between Dan and Ruth was more evident (and I'm thankful it was *only* friendship--May-December romances always seem weird to me). The sets are gorgeous (if they didn't film inside the actual Supreme Court building, they did a heckuva good job recreating it!), and though this is of course a comedy, the humor is tempered with respect for the actual Supreme Court. In other words, you'll laugh--but you'll also realize the importance of the work done by those nine men and women on the Court. Don't let its age fool you; First Monday in October is a must-see.

destiny kohl

July 20, 2015

This movie on top of hilarious, was a very well thought out movie. If you get the chance, watch it.

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