A Job Partially Well Done

Rating: 7/10 (18 February 2016)

Reviewed by: Dare Devil Kid (DDK)
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Though it'll undoubtedly have a more profound effect on those with a deeper knowledge of Apple's history or who share a fervent relationship with every product the company launches, "Steve Jobs" is nonetheless an affecting piece of cinema that boldly chooses a stark portrayal of the tech giant's late CEO without ever veering into the degradation or canonization of its eponymous subject. Set backstage at three iconic product launches and ending in 1998 with the unveiling of the iMac, "Steve Jobs" takes us behind the scenes of Apple's digital revolution to paint an intimate portrait of its cofounder.
Aaron Sorkin's screenplay and Danny Boyle's Direction offers a Steve Jobs profile that doesn't idolize or criticize him, providing us valuable insight to the man's life and other important individuals who impacted it. But that insight feels incomplete and unrefined at various points in the film, because Sorkin's (usually impeccable) writing keeps treading into theatrical, garrulous, and, dare I say, even self-indulgent territory to metamorphose into a truly involving experience.
Michael Fassbender and Kate Winslet create all the drama, intensity, conflict, and dynamism required to propel Aaron Sorkin's minimalist screenplay into grander terrain, but the film is simultaneously inspiring and frustrating, much like the individual it's based on. In particular, Fassbender's performance is a striking accomplishment of restraint merged seamlessly with command, as he portrays Jobs as a charming, amiable, and engrossing person in one scene, and a conflicted, revolting, contemptuous monster in the next. With due respect to all the other Oscar nominees this year, Fassbender deserves adulation for getting through stanzas of intricate, chatty dialogue alone. And, though, the movie never matches the caliber of its leading man's sublime performance, it's nevertheless, as mentioned earlier, inspiring and frustrating at the same time. Perhaps, more inspiring than it is frustrating, and that's still a pretty good thing.