Image courtesy of Open Road Films
Running Time: 2 hours 5 minutes
Rating: PG-13
Synopsis:
Jobs is the story of Steve Jobs (Ashton Kutcher) and his development of Apple Computers. The film spans from Jobs’ college days in 1974 until the release of the iPod in 2001. The bulk of the movie focuses on the early collaboration between Jobs and Steve Wozniak as they form Apple Computers, and as they try to get their fledging company off the ground. Jobs eventually becomes his own worst enemy when his relentless drive and seemingly impossible vision almost ruin the company.
Krista's Review:
Full disclaimer here… I am a huge Apple fan, and my love for the company’s products definitely colors my feelings on the movie, because I appreciate the vision necessary to create such stunning tools.
I found this biopic to be more interesting than most of the movies about famous musicians or actors that have come out in recent years. What I appreciated about director Joshua Michael Stern is that he doesn’t hold back on the depiction of Jobs. At times Jobs is shown as a bully, egomaniac, emotionally unstable, and heartless. Nevertheless, Stern is still able to show us a multifaceted outlier that you can’t help but root for. Ashton Kutcher had a tall order to play a man with so much complexity, and I found him a capable actor. He manages to convey the physicality of Jobs, but I would have liked more emotional connection to the material.
Josh Gad, who portrays Apple Computer’s co-founder Steve Wozniak, delivers the real heart of the movie, and has some of the best scenes. I also found Dermot Mulroney to be strong in his role as an early investor and partner in the creation of Apple Computers. As much as the movie focused on the early years of the company, I would have loved to have learned more about the meteoric rise of the company after Jobs is reinstated as the CEO. Overall, the movie was interesting, but not terribly exciting. B-