Jobs (11/25/2013)

Rated PG-13 for some drug content and brief strong language.

Starring Ashton Kutcher, Dermot Mulroney, Josh Gad

Directed by Joshua Michael Stern

I’m definitely a Mac guy…but I’m not sure I’m at Jobs guy.

We follow Steve Jobs (Ashton Kutcher) from the enthusiasm and self-discovery of his youth through his darkest days, brightest triumphs, and the ultimate power of his drive, his passions, and his undying will to change everything we thought possible. Dark, honest, and uncompromising, Jobs plunges into the depths of Steve Jobs’ character, uncovering his driving motivations, his gifts, his flaws, his failures, and his ultimate successes.

What was the biggest take away from the film? Steve Jobs isn’t a nice guy… he uses people and then screws them over. On top of that, there are several flaws in the film that made me wish I had skipped it.

First of all, I didn’t learn anything new about the man behind the machines. There are few scenes in the movie where the director tried to evoke an emotional response from the audience, but realistically, it felt more like a documentary that was low budget and thrown together for Discovery Channel.

Secondly, the pace is painfully slow. And with a running time of 2 hours and 8 minutes, I was thankful I had my iPhone to check email and update my Facebook status.

Thirdly, the acting is dismal. Kutcher over-emphasizes Jobs odd walk and stance as if it meant something…but instead it was just a distraction that took me out of the movie every time. It also made it abundantly clear that Kutcher made little to no effort to mimic his voice or mannerisms. To be fair I am not an Aston Kutcher fan, and watching him portray someone as significant and influential as Jobs made the whole film somewhat laughable.

Then there is the horrible editing. Some scenes start and end randomly – with no emotional content. Way too many scenes have no relationship to the structure of the movie – taking valuable time and adding absolutely nothing to the story. There were times when it felt like scenes were dragging on and other times when it felt like they were cramming way too much information into one scene. Disjointed would be too nice of a word.

Finally there is the complete absence of heart. Love him for his passionate genius or hate him for this ruthless business savy, Steve Jobs is an amazingly interesting person…but you wouldn’t know it from this biopic. There is no emotional content or teaching moments; there aren’t any memorable lines or noteworthy moments. This isn’t a remarkable movie; it’s a hollow, uninspiring docudrama.

“Skip” the movie and read the book.

SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
There’s no sex, nudity or violence in this film. The PG-13 rating comes mostly because of the language and the subject matter. There are 2 F-words and a dozen or so other obscenities.

CONVERSATION STARTER

1. What did you know about Steve jobs prior to this movie?


2. What impression of him do you have now after watching it?


3. What are some positive characteristics of Steve Jobs? What are some negatives?


4. Read Mark 8:36
   
   And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?
   
   Explain in your own words what that means.


5. What were some of the things Steve lost in his pursuit of wealth?


6. Why is losing your soul not worth gaining the whole world?


7. What can you do this week to focus more on the internal things and not the temporal?