I didn’t know much about the Apple Corporation and its history prior to watching this film, and I didn’t know much more when it finished. The same can’t be said about the subject of this film, a man credited with revolutionising the mobile telephone.
When you have an actor as good as Michael Fassbender as the lead, it makes sense to give him as much screen time as possible, and Fassbender probably appears in every frame of the film, or at least every scene. His interactions with Steve Wozniak (a very impressive Seth Rogen) and assistant Joanna Hoffman (the always excellent Kate Winslet) probably take the most time, but the ones which have the most emotional resonance are with his daughter, Lisa, played by three actresses as she grows up from age 5 to 19.
The setting of the film, at his famous launches, allows you to see into his interactions with the most significant people in his life, how he prepares for the public, what product he is about to sell to the world and the state of the business. This is probably the most aesthetically low-key film Danny Boyle has made, but the visuals suit the subject and the technology for which he was famous. It isn’t a typical biopic, it’s a film which tries to get to the private Steve Jobs, the man with poor interpersonal skills, a difficult childhood, and a strange way of interacting with his daughter.
When I said I didn’t learn much about Apple computers or phones, it’s not a problem because it’s not something which interests me. What I wanted was an engaging and somewhat informative character study of the main subject, the film delivered exactly that and that’s why I will quite happily watch it again.
Review by DavidVIP 10BlockedParent2020-01-01T22:42:56Z
I didn’t know much about the Apple Corporation and its history prior to watching this film, and I didn’t know much more when it finished. The same can’t be said about the subject of this film, a man credited with revolutionising the mobile telephone.
When you have an actor as good as Michael Fassbender as the lead, it makes sense to give him as much screen time as possible, and Fassbender probably appears in every frame of the film, or at least every scene. His interactions with Steve Wozniak (a very impressive Seth Rogen) and assistant Joanna Hoffman (the always excellent Kate Winslet) probably take the most time, but the ones which have the most emotional resonance are with his daughter, Lisa, played by three actresses as she grows up from age 5 to 19.
The setting of the film, at his famous launches, allows you to see into his interactions with the most significant people in his life, how he prepares for the public, what product he is about to sell to the world and the state of the business. This is probably the most aesthetically low-key film Danny Boyle has made, but the visuals suit the subject and the technology for which he was famous. It isn’t a typical biopic, it’s a film which tries to get to the private Steve Jobs, the man with poor interpersonal skills, a difficult childhood, and a strange way of interacting with his daughter.
When I said I didn’t learn much about Apple computers or phones, it’s not a problem because it’s not something which interests me. What I wanted was an engaging and somewhat informative character study of the main subject, the film delivered exactly that and that’s why I will quite happily watch it again.