On October 5, 2011, American inventor and entrepreneur, Steve Jobs, lost his life due to a relapse of cancer that resulted in a respiratory arrest. The inventor was chairman and co-founder of Apple incorporated when he died. He was survived by his wife, their three children, and Lisa Brennan-Jobs, daughter of Steve and his ex-girlfriend, Chrisann Brennan. On top of that, Jobs left behind a legacy in Apple inc. which has not yet been forgotten.

Now, nearly two years later, Jobs’ story was re-captured in a film adaptation of his life, titled “Jobs,” which was released on August 16, 2013. The movie follows Jobs’ (played by Ashton Kutcher) life and rise to fame from his time at Reed College to becoming CEO of Apple inc. in the late 90’s.

The story follows Jobs’ early success in the company and how he fought through many obstacles in order to create his technological giant, Apple Inc. From founding the company to beginning mass production of merchandise, Jobs finds himself in a power struggle with the board of directors, and experiencing personal problems with his ex-girlfriend Chrisann Brennan’s (Ahna O’Reilly) pregnancy. No longer able to cope with the stress of Apple inc. Jobs leaves the company only to come back 11 years later as the company nears bankruptcy to turn it around and reinstate it as a power-player in the technology industry.

I respect Hollywood’s wanting to honor Jobs’ life by adapting it to the big screen, however, I believe that the attempt to stick to the true story as much as possible and not contort the story at all made it boring.

The main issue I had with the film was that there was not much of a climax to the story. The story concentrated on some of Jobs’ issues for too long at parts that when he was finally kicked out of the company, and the movie finally hits its “climax” moment, it was kind of a let-down. There was not much of a peak, and the conclusion was so stretched that there wasn’t much of a drop in action, and no significant character growth from the climax to the conclusion.

However, there are well executed aspects about the movie also, depending on what you like. If you are one who likes inspirational movies of someone overcoming the odds and rising to the top, then this is the movie for you. However, if you own an iPhone and are just going because you know Steve Jobs owned the company that made your trusty cell phone, I highly suggest that you reconsider your reasons for seeing this movie, you will likely be bored, and wish you hadn’t wasted good money on this movie.

Overall, Jobs isn’t a bad story, but I don’t think it makes a great movie. Steve Jobs lived a great, inspiring life and had many honorable achievements, however, Hollywood’s attempt at adapting his life to the big screen was not successful. If you want to learn a bit about the man behind the iPad, then go ahead, try the movie out. Just don’t expect much more than a slightly interesting dramatized documentary.

Joel Fowler
Reporter