Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Did you listen to the podcast with Walt? It seems like you might be doing exactly what you are complaining about because what he says is not at all disrespectful to the film or to the filmmakers.

The cook reference was out of line . Yes I have.
 
I have mixed feelings about this movie, not sure if I'll go see it in the theater or what for the DVD or netflix streaming.
 
Weird that you would subject yourself to over 4 hours of them then... was someone forcing you to watch them at gunpoint?? *sooooo confused*

I'm sorry, would you rather me judge them without seeing them or watch a few of them and make an informed decision? There are 6 of them, I've seen two. Enough for me to form an opinion.
 
Last edited:
I liked the movie but as others have stated we needed iPod iPhone iPad then maybe all the haters would have stopped complaining as it would of showed Steve as he mellowed with age.

I thought they showed his maturity through a different lense; with his daughter in the final act.

I thoroughly enjoyed the movie knowing full well a lot of the content was fictionalized. But that's what I wanted; great entertainment.

I was not a big fan of recent Steve Jobs movies/documentaries but I would recommend this highly.
 
In the film, Woz was trying to teach Jobs to make the Macintosh upgradable like the Apple 2 with extra slots etc.

I think Tim could learn the Apple hardware lessons today by keeping the ram upgradable and cases not glued shut. Direct parallels today with this film!!!

Hint Apple sales department - many middle class married men want to keep the computer purchase price as low as possible when the wife gets the sticker shock but 6 months or a year later when the wife is NOT looking add the ram, ssd, dvd drive, bigger monitor etc. This is how you stay married - no joking!

I liked when they ran around in the film because they did not have the Apple wrenches to open the case when the Mac wouldnt talk!!!

Tim needs to see the film and learn the lesson of the hardware portion of the film and realise how it caused Apple to tank, and yes history can repeat itself. Think its not possible at this point?

He must remember Ford motor company absolutely RULED the world in Car sales. However, Henry Ford continued to only offered cars in black and was obstinate and refused to change! General Motors started offering cars in colors which caused GM to pass Ford in sales. Further, In the fifties GM had great stying with the fins on all Models. Ford stying was way behind and sales lagged even further. It took 50 years for Ford to regain leadership by not taking federal bailout money when GM tanked.

The lesson is give the customer what THEY WANT and NOT tell them what they want.
 
Last edited:
Pretty sure Steve Jobs didn't make the movie, is in the movie himself or is promoting the movie. So what difference would it make to the local art houses? I would imagine there are a lot of topics that the owners of art houses in Silicon Valley don't care for but still show movies about.

Just like there's very little reason to think this movie won't be on iTunes. Especially if it does well in the theater. Apple is a business. They aren't going to withhold this movie because they don't happen to think it captures their former leader well.
One glaring abscense to the Silicon Valley listing is Camera Cinemas. They showed the hack Steve Jobs movie a few months ago but not this one having a more positive light. Hmm ...
 
Compared to the written biographies and previous films, I think the film did a better job of explaining Jobs' lack of empathy, problems with interpersonal relationships and narcisistic tendencies due to being rejected twice at birth.

While Fassbender did not look like him physically and should have had dark brown contacts, I think he had more energy than any of the other actors considered for the role. It is his energy that captivates you.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: orbital~debris
I'm sorry - who are these people in the round table talking about Jobs as if they knew him, or actually anything about him, or the industry, before they picked up a script???
 
  • Like
Reactions: Tycho24
Also, the film is outstanding. One of the best written films of the year, right up there with Sorkin's work on Social Network. Fassbender and Winslet will easily get Oscar nominations, as will the film, screenwriter, and possibly director.
 
I'm sorry, would you rather me judge them without seeing them or watch a few of them and make an informed decision? There are 6 of them, I've seen two. Enough for me to form an opinion.

Cool cool...
Haha, no- you're right.
I didn't mean to get all "movie snob" on you. =P
I love GOOD (though I realize that is subjective) horror, but agree with Rob Zombie that it is not currently coming out of America. I like my horror more like "Audition" & the like.
Regardless... just because I personally could easily recognize that series of movies as stinkers (once again... in MY book), didn't give me the right to judge anybody else's cinema sensibilities, so you do have my apology for the tone.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jpgr15
Do we know if iTunes will carry this movie? (Did Tim say something about hell and it being cold:D?)

Otherwise I guess I can wait for a year until Netflix picks it up.
The soundtrack is on iTunes. Apple will allow it. They allowed the Ashton Kutcher version and the hatchet job documentary. CBS on the other hand won't allow ads for the Dan Rather movie called "Truth".
 
Wonder why none of these movies cover the iPhone and iPad launch. Especially the iPhone since it's the product that really shot Apple into the stratosphere
It's a 2 hour movie. The script is 180 pages, almost 70 pages longer than the average script because of the dialogue. If they would added the iPhone launch they would be headed into Lord of the Rings territory lengthwise.
 
Two things jumped out at me from that round table discussion.
First, the scenes of Fassbender in the garage with long hair and a beard were striking; I thought it was Christian Bale playing Jobs, but I also thought for a second I was looking at Steve himself. It was spot on, and slightly spooky.
Second, the comment Fassbender made about Steve's respect for the engineers on his various teams and having them sign their work really hit home with me. I realized that for all the grief he gave them during those crunch times, he really admired the people who worked for him and produced according to the abilities he believed they had. Nowhere was that more evident in having them sign the molds for the Mac. He treated them like the artists they really were. They didn't just have a paycheck from Apple, they had a legacy that would remain long after the money was gone. They helped change the world.
For the first time in a long time, I had a new insight to the guy and it came from an actor sitting at a mock serious discussion. I am amazed.
 
Compared to the written biographies and previous films, I think the film did a better job of explaining Jobs' lack of empathy, problems with interpersonal relationships and narcisistic tendencies due to being rejected twice at birth.

While Fassbender did not look like him physically and should have had dark brown contacts, I think he had more energy than any of the other actors considered for the role. It is his energy that captivates you.
A great actor can make you disbelieve physical appearance by filling your space with the personality of the character.
 
  • Like
Reactions: orbital~debris
I'm not an Apple guy (to date) but I've been fascinated by Steve Jobs for quite some time. The impression I have of him is largely based upon hearsay acquired through short pieces in print or on radio. He was a taskmaster; he expected those around him to give their best effort both for their own sake, and thus by extension, the company; he disdained the typical corporate 'meeting'; etc..

Has there been a truthful book (or books) written about Steve Jobs? Is there a MacRumors community consensus (at least close to one) on this?

I have no plans to see this movie. It's difficult (not impossible) to extract the essence of a man for use in a movie's form factor. I don't expect a hagiography but do expect an honest effort towards as accurate a portrayal as is possible. If it can't be done in a movie's allotted length, it shouldn't be done at all.

I might not yet know the complete Steve Job's story but I get the sense this movie is tearing down just to tear down. I hope I'm wrong.

Welcome to the forums :-D
 
Yeah, cause Walt mossenberg is not bias.... Lol! He will say exactly what Cook wants to hear.

Maybe see the movie and make your own opinion? Otherwise go easy on bashing it?

Seems quite a number of people have enjoyed it.

I'll watch it and pass judgment afterwards.

Your logic makes sense. Someone is making a movie about someone. That person is not biased, while the people who did know the person that the movie is about are... biased. Wow.
 
Has there been a truthful book (or books) written about Steve Jobs? Is there a MacRumors community consensus (at least close to one) on this?

I have no plans to see this movie. It's difficult (not impossible) to extract the essence of a man for use in a movie's form factor. I don't expect a hagiography but do expect an honest effort towards as accurate a portrayal as is possible. If it can't be done in a movie's allotted length, it shouldn't be done at all.

I might not yet know the complete Steve Job's story but I get the sense this movie is tearing down just to tear down. I hope I'm wrong.

If you are wanting to do a serious study, I recommend you begin with a very good book from Steven Levy: "Hackers - Heroes of the Digital Age". That will give you a great background on what it took to build Silicon Valley, starting at MIT in the 1950-1960s.
Next, read Levy's book "Insanely Great", which is the story of the Macintosh. "Apple Confidential" by Owen Linzmayer is a must read. I enjoyed Walter Isaacson's "Steve Jobs", though many people felt it maligned Steve and focused primarily on his strong-willed business acumen. The recent "Becoming Steve Jobs" was quite an excellent book, and filled in a lot of gaps in the public knowledge of his persona.

If you just want some good stories directly from the people who worked with him, stop at Andy Hertzfeld's folklore.org and start reading!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Benjamin Frost
It's a 2 hour movie. The script is 180 pages, almost 70 pages longer than the average script because of the dialogue. If they would added the iPhone launch they would be headed into Lord of the Rings territory lengthwise.
Actually, if this does well enough, a sequel of Steve's later years covering the iPod, iPhone and his last product launch would be a great follow up. Lisa would be a young woman and Woz a full time phlantrophist.
 
  • Like
Reactions: orbital~debris
I enjoyed Walter Isaacson's "Steve Jobs", though many people felt it maligned Steve and focused primarily on his strong-willed business acumen.

I really didn't think this book was that bad or malevolent in portraying him. Granted I'm just some random guy who never meat anyone interviewed for the book, but it seemed pretty balanced to me actually, and focused just as much on his personal life as it did on the business side, and just a much on the bad as the good. It seems to me like there are people who insist that anything not portraying Steve Jobs as anything less than a saint and an utter genius is maligning him, and I think it's pretty obvious he was far from a saint. There are plenty of positives and clearly many people's live benefited from what he accomplished, but with all the good he did, there were were some not-so-great parts of him that shouldn't get short shrift either.

By the same token, I think the movie focused way too much on specific things, and really didn't paint anything close to a whole picture of even a fictionalized Steve Jobs. I mean, geez, from the movie you'd think Joanna Hoffman was his wife, while Laureen Powell Jobs was nowhere to be seen. And the product launches were merely backdrops for what basically turns out to be a depiction of an ongoing argument between him, Lisa and Chrisann Brennan. After two and a half hours of focusing on that single storyline, I kinda wished I hadn't spent the money on the ticket.

(Oh, did I just spoil the movie for people? Well good... I may have done you a favor really.)

I haven't read "Becoming Steve Jobs" yet, but the impression I'm getting from others (both promoting and criticizing it) is that the book is a puff piece that seeks to beatify him for sainthood, and if that's really the case, I think I'd feel cheated if I bought it, too, as it goes the opposite extreme from the Sorkin film.
 
Last edited:
I finally made it out to the theater the other day to see the film, and I hated it. If they were going to make up so many things why didn't they exploit Steve's adoption story and tie it in to his issues with Lisa? That would have made for a stronger story.

First, Fassbender should win best actor.

My biggest problem with it was not the way it portrayed Steve Jobs, it was fine to show that side of him even if it was exaggerated, but with the way his relationship with Woz was shown. I actually felt like it assassinated Woz's character much more so than Jobs'. Woz apparently disagrees, and that is fine. I found it painful to watch knowing what the real story was. For reference I also disliked The Social Network. Sorkin just does not get what makes these men interesting. He excels at taking a compelling true narrative and turning it into a pedestrian fiction. Boiling a Steve Jobs movie down to a family drama, and then throwing a few silly wink, wink moments in is such a waste.

I wish I had trusted my gut from the time I heard the first line of the first trailer, "What do you do?" That line coming out of Woz had me concerned, and it was well founded. What really convinced me to see it though was that so many people were saying how amazing the script was and what a unique structure it had. When I heard it was going to take place backstage at 3 product launches I couldn't imagine that being compelling no matter how I broke it down. Turns out the movie is exactly what I imagined it would be. Danny Boyle is being praised for his "amazing" direction, but while he did fine I couldn't help thinking he borrowed Oliver Stone's vertical editing technique but failed to use it enough. Giving it the full "JFK" treatment I think would have resulted in a far superior and much more dramatic film.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Benjamin Frost
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.