With all the female minds on this project, all of whom work in a male-dominated business, the equity of the title doesn't only refer to its financial definition. Menon includes repeated asides about the differences in the workplace between men and women. Less productive male coworkers of Naomi's are preferred for promotion due to their connections. Naomi is believed to be more abrasive than others in her office, though there's never any evidence of it in the film. Pregnancy must be concealed til the last possible moment, and women's advice is more readily dismissed. Equity occasionally underlines this in a ham-fisted way, like when Thomas' character is caught looking at one of those 'have it all' Internet articles, but when it's allowing these and other slights to go uncommented upon, it's on surer footing.
Of the several post-recession financial dramas, Equity isn't the best of the lot. Menon's film has the best malfeasance while also being the sole entry to consider women on Wall Street, but the way it gets to the former leaves much to be desired. Though Gunn is wonderfully authoritative and restrained, and the first hour hums with intelligence and relevance, the film slowly deflates from subpar characterization and on-the-nose dialogue. It's a strong effort that needed some sanding. More rough-edged female characters are always welcome. C+