Braingasm for the Sapiosexual - Steve Jobs, the movie

“People are different and they are different at different times”. This does hold good for celebrities and popular figures too right? We do not really expect a world renowned genius to be modest, humble, polite and courteous all the time, do we? Or if we actually do, whose fault is it anyways!

Whoever told us that celebrities should set an example in every aspect of their life? I never really understood the logic behind some people telling you that they like X, Y, Z as an actor because he is such a good human being. How does being a good human being have anything to do with his on screen abilities? The point I’m trying to drive home is that the ability to differentiate between the skill/competency of a person and his/her personality.

I haven’t blogged for ages and am a bit rustic at the moment. Having had a marathon 15 hours of back to back sessions at college (Welcome to B-School woes!), I get back to the hostel wanting to take a nap, but alas, it’s that time of the year wherein you try to catch on all the movies you have missed out on, before they give away the Oscars. I dunno why I do this though, just for the masochistic numbness derived when people you think deserved the award don’t end up winning.

I ended up watching Steve Jobs whose trailer I have seen a million times and having been following up on all that has been written about the depiction of Jobs in the film. There has been a lot written and said about the misrepresentation of the person that Jobs was. My favourite comment being “How can they make a film that shows Jobs as a condescending maniac when he isn’t alive to defend himself!” “The movie doesn’t even capture the most poignant moments of Jobs’ life”

People need to appreciate two different aspects of making a biopic. One that deals with capturing every moment of a legend’s life making the audience feel like they have had an overdose of Draught of Living Death. Very few 3 hour long biopics manage to hold one’s attention. Then there are the movies that revolve around a few specific moments of a celebrated person’s life. Jobs does the latter and smartly so. There cannot be a smarter movie for probably one of the smartest minds to have walked the planet. And that by itself is a fitting ode to the legend that Jobs was!

First, the casting is super awesome. Forgive me childish words of excitement. From the bang on performance of Fassbender to the maturity of Jeff Daniels (who manages to be noticed in a role that only exists to be ostracised) to the elegance of Kate Winslet in shifting from a marshmallow to an iron hammer within a fraction of a second to an inexplicable performance from Seth Rogen as a friend fighting to be considered on the same level as a legend. 

Second, it is based on a book that gave the Walter Isaacson access to the real Steve Jobs and people in his life. Danny Boyle was wise enough to pitch the film based on three important occasions in Jobs’ illustrious life. Just 3. Not the entire 26172391735232 moments beautifully entwining the professional with the personal. Third, it has the BRILLIANT Sorkin writing the dialogues. Nobody writes smart people the way Sorkin does, be it Mark Zuckerberg, Will McAvoy, Jed Bartlet or now Steve Jobs. The walking-and-talking style of his screenplay along with the terseness of the editing and directing always make sure that you are hooked on to every single word. In my case, multiple rewinds to relive a smartass moment-there are many of those, of course.

To me, a movie is as good as the number of people you want to make sure saw the movie. I have texted, called, cajoled, and coerced my friends into watching it, the traditional way. Now, I’m blogging after a really long tiring day, going digital as well.

To me, a movie is as good as the number of scenes/dialogues that you wanted to cheer for. This had at least half a dozen of those. The Beatles/Rainman/Pepsi references took wit to a whole new level. The Wozniack-Jobs, Lisa-Jobs and the multiple Hoffman-Jobs, confrontation scenes stand testimonial to the tautness of the script.

Jobs is portrayed as being arrogant, stubborn, antisocial and a tyrant but one cannot overlook the film’s portrayal of him as an absolute genius and that is why we remember him not because he was polite. He had a revolutionary vision not a humanitarian award. So do start watching movies for the right reason. The writer-director have specified that it is fictionalised fact, some of the dialogue did partake creative liberty to sound dramatic. It might be an exaggeration of real life events. But, you know what LIFE IS ALL ABOUT EXAGGERATION and cinema is a medium which is its posterboy.

This is my new favourite movie in sickness and in health, because of it being smart not being polite. There was another movie made loosely based on a real life person which faced much flak but now it is regarded the best movie ever made unanimously by all movie lists, though it did not use the person’s name. The movie is titled after the person in this case and it does live up to the things he was most known for. Go ahead and have a braingasm and do not delve too much into how Jobs is rolling in his grave. If you still want to complain, you deserve to watch Jobs starring Kutcher instead.