Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine (2015)

A look at the personal and private life of the late Apple CEO, Steve Jobs.

Director:

Alex Gibney

Writer:

Alex Gibney

Stars:

Steve Jobs, Alex Gibney, Steve Wozniak

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Steve Jobs	...	Self - Co-Founder, Apple Computers (archive footage)
Alex Gibney	...	Self - Narrator (voice)
Steve Wozniak	...	Self - Co-Founder, Apple Computers (archive footage)
Michael S. Malone	...	Self - Tech Journalist
Nolan Bushnell	...	Self - Co-Founder, Atari
Regis McKenna	...	Self - Hi-Tech Marketing Consultant
Michael Moritz	...	Self - Venture Capitalist
Sherry Turkle	...	Self - Director, MIT Initiative on Technology and the Self
Bob Belleville	...	Self - Director of Engineering, Macintosh
Chris Espinosa	...	Self - Manager, User Education (archive footage)
Michael Murray	...	Self - Director of Marketing (archive footage)
Rony Sebok	...	Self - Software Engineer (archive footage)
Bud Tribble	...	Self - Software Manager (archive footage)
Daniel Kottke	...	Self - Friend & Apple Technician
Kobun Chino Otogawa	...	Self - Job's Spiritual Adviser (archive footage)

Storyline

In his signature black turtleneck and blue jeans, shrouded in shadows below a milky apple, Steve Jobs' image was ubiquitous. But who was the man on the stage? What accounted for the grief of so many across the world when he died? From Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney, 'Steve Jobs: The Man In The Machine' is a critical examination of Jobs who was at once revered as an iconoclastic genius and a barbed-tongued tyrant. A candid look at Jobs' legacy featuring interviews with a handful of those close to him at different stages in his life, the film is evocative and nuanced in capturing the essence of the Apple legend and his values which shape the culture of Silicon Valley to this day.

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Plot Keywords:

business ethics | zen | father daughter relationship | family relationships | businessman | 

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Taglines:

Bold. Brilliant. Brutal.

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Genres:

Documentary | Biography

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some language

Did You Know?

Trivia

Apple senior executive Eddy Cue was quick to express his disappointment in this documentary, describing the film on Twitter as "an inaccurate and mean-spirited view of my friend" and "not a reflection of the Steve I knew."

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Quotes

Himself - Narrator: In the end I was left with the same question with which I began this journey: Why did so many strangers weep for Steve Jobs? It is just simple to say it was because he gave us products we love, without asking why we love them the way we do. It is too simple even to conclude that we love them because they connect us to a wider world and the people in our lives that are far away. Because these machines isolate us too. Perhaps the contradictory nature of our experience with these gadgets, narrates...

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Connections

References Fiddler on the Roof (1971)

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Soundtracks

Mr. Tambourine Man
(uncredited)
Written by Bob Dylan
Performed by Bob Dylan

User Reviews

A more balanced and fair argument than it's given credit for.

Despite his over productivity and well-known biases, Alex Gibney is always an essential documentarian to watch, especially since his Oscar winning film. He's already made the best documentary of the year thus far with his attack on Scientology, Going Clear, anything else is icing on the cake. While that film is a revealing call to arms, his Steve Jobs film The Man In The Machine tries those same tricks but it's coming a little too late, especially as the film frames itself over the outpouring of grief over his death. Not that the film is a poor effort. As Going Clear illustrated what we already knew, so does this film. It's not a 2-hour attack as reported - along with the justifications to question society's hero worship towards him are all the reasons he's beloved and considered a visionary that changed the world. Those later Apple announcements with the awed cheers for Jobs earn a similar spine-tingle as the Scientology congregations in Going Clear. It's more endearing here.

The negative reaction to this documentary's criticisms almost highlight that hero worship he still harnesses, but it's difficult to argue over the hard facts of his bullying, both minor and major as documented here. Ultimately, Gibney poses the film as a reflection on our emotional connection to our technology and how that extends to its creator, but while it's an interesting conversation it results only in vague existentialism asking similar questions that he started with. Yes, we've grown dependant on our tech and Jobs' death sparked fear that innovation will slow, that's more or less where the grief comes from and nothing to do with Jobs' life or business tactics. His image as an icon is Goliath and this film is a little David and it offers a small but fair chiseling of that towering statue. It's not Gibney's best work and it spends this year in the shadow of two significant films, but it's still solidly produced and worth a watch for an insight into Jobs' life, especially with Danny Boyle's biopic on the horizon.

7/10

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 September 2015 (USA)

Also Known As:

Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine

Filming Locations:

San Francisco, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$140,064, 6 September 2015

Gross USA:

$494,506

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$494,506

Company Credits

Production Co:

CNN Films, Jigsaw Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min

Color:

Color