Disappointing

Rating: 5/10 (24 July 2018)

A biography of the famous computer genius (played by Michael Fassbeneder) is played out in three different segments in 1984, 1988, and 1998. All segments involve a product launch with all the backstage tension that precedes presentations before huge audiences.
It is interesting that the screenwriter of this film, Aaron Sorkin, also wrote "The Social Network" (2011). Both films were about computer geniuses who had acted terribly toward other people.
Both films had the difficulty of making computer science interesting to the many who know little or nothing about it. "The Social Network" succeeded in ways that "Steve Jobs" does not. Mind you, there is less technical jargon needed to describe an interactive website than to describe a series of computers. Still, "The Social Network" used computer jargon as background against the bigger drama of greed and betrayal. "Steve Jobs" is overloaded with technical jargon to the point that it becomes difficult to care.
In one scene, Jobs confronts a former boss played by Jeff Daniels. Director Danny Boyle intercuts this scene with a flashback scene between the two that had involved a major conflict. The director and acting were great in this scene but it failed as the detail of their discussions were often difficult to follow.
There are many moments when someone is accusing Steve of being a jerk. Even if they may be right, the accusers all seem to be jerks as well. Despite the good acting, it is hard to really like or sympathize with anyone in this film except Steve's biological daughter whose unstable mother frequently wants more money from him.
The good team behind this film (which also includes Kate Winslet as Jobs' longtime colleague and friend) make it tempting to like the movie. But overall, it's a well-dressed mannequin.