The story of Steve Jobs received an upgrade of its own in the new biopic, named after the late Apple co-founder, premiering this weekend.
“Steve Jobs” is directed by Danny Boyle (“127 Hours,” “Slumdog Millionaire”) and written by Aaron Sorkin, writer of “The Social Network,” and stars Michael Fassbender, Kate Winslet, Seth Rogen, and Jeff Daniels. The film is based on the Walter Isaacson book of the same name, and is about three core moments in Steve Jobs’ career, each of which giving us more and more of a look at one of the greatest minds of the modern era.
This was one of my most anticipated films of the year. With a terrific cast on both sides of the camera and trailers that hyped me up even more, I felt there was no way this could be bad, let alone as bad as the 2013 misfire “Jobs,” starring Ashton Kutcher.
One thing was clear right from the beginning, and that is that Fassbender was the clear choice to portray Jobs. Man, does he nail it. Everything that Fassbender does just feels as if we are watching the real man he is portraying, and I absolutely forgot I was watching an actor play the part. The mannerisms are spot-on, the witty banter is done excellently and Fassbender gives the role the perfect amount of intelligence combined with narcissism.
The entire supporting cast had a lot to match-up with, and they didn’t lose a step. Winslet was great as Joanna Hoffman, the marketing executive and all-around assistant to Jobs. She did not get too many chances to shine, but her role was very solid and managed to keep up to pace with Fassbender.
Daniels once again proved to me he is much more than what he was back in “Dumb and Dumber,” with another excellent performance as ex-Apple CEO John Sculley. He is totally believable, and has some incredible scenes with Fassbender.
The one who stood out to me the most was definitely Seth Rogen, as he was marvelous as Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. Rogen pulls off the character he is not used to playing with pure elegance, and the scenes involving him and Fassbender were my absolute favorite scenes of the movie.
The script by Aaron Sorkin is a masterpiece and, to me, is a no-brainer for an Academy Award nomination. This movie lives and dies off of the script and the performances, and both of those are remarkable.
Danny Boyle also handles the source material well and gives the film a much needed solid direction, as a movie about literally three events goes for 122-minutes, and never for a moment feels boring.
The cinematography and score are both noticeably energetic and fast paced, as they try to keep up with Jobs’ frantic lifestyle. The movie moves so fast because that’s how Steve Jobs lived, and I thought it was a terrific move to use only the three main settings.
The movie is quite frantic, which sometimes had me feeling as if I need a break from the action for just one moment, but that never really happened. I did like the moments Jobs shared with his daughter, but I also did think that it took away from the absolute madness and chaos that I learned to love from the start.
I wasn’t sure how they would conclude this film and, with no spoilers, I’m not sure if I love the choice they made. It just didn’t feel like the movie was over yet. I just wanted more. There is also an iPod reference that just felt very forced, and it stuck out like a sore thumb to me.
Overall, “Steve Jobs” is the best film about the co-founder of Apple to date by a long shot. Michael Fassbender gives a perfect performance as Jobs, with the supporting cast not falling too far behind him. Sorkin and Boyle craft a truly excellent, enjoyably frantic, thoroughly entertaining film about a man with a dream.
“Steve Jobs” is a blast of a time, while still being enriched in dramatic heft and historical accuracy.
9/10
