Steve Jobs is a biographical drama directed by Danny Boyle, with a screenplay by Aaron Sorkin, which was adapted from Walter Isaacson’s biography of the same name. The film is divided into three distinct scenes, all taking place behind the curtain before three product launches. The film opens up in 1984 before the unveiling of the Macintosh. Next the film shifts to 1988 as Steve Jobs (Michael Fassbender) prepares to announce his NeXTcube. Finally, the film ends in 1998 with the presentation of the revolutionary iMac.
Ever since Steve Jobs’s untimely death in 2011, the film industry has become exceedingly saturated with Jobs-related material. In addition to the numerous documentaries about the head of Apple, Ashton Kutcher gave us an unbelievably subpar portrayal of Steve Jobs in Joshua Michael Stern’s 2013 feature Jobs. I mention this recent history of Jobs-related media to highlight that I understand the public’s hesitation to go see another movie about Steve Jobs. But if you have not seen this yet, I desperately urge you to rent this immediately—this movie hits the mark in nearly every way possible!
The real geniuses behind Steve Jobs are director Danny Boyle and screenwriter Aaron Sorkin. Danny Boyle is the filmmaker behind award-winning films like Slumdog Millionaire and 127 Hours, but for me, Steve Jobs is his best work yet. In this film, Boyle taps into his veteran directing style to carefully craft each scene and get the best performances out of his actors and actresses. Despite Boyle’s own brilliance, Aaron Sorkin is the single piece to this puzzle that is most imperative. Sorkin’s credits as a TV writer include heavyweights like The West Wing and The Newsroom, and his movie résumé is just as impressive, boasting scripts like A Few Good Men, Charlie Wilson’s War, The Social Network, and Moneyball. Sorkin is known in industry circles as a preeminent screenwriter due to his rapid-fire technique, and in Steve Jobs, he has provided us dialogue that I have not seen done so masterfully in years. 
The movie lasts for 122 minutes, and, as I mentioned, features only three scenes—this makes Sorkin’s work even more remarkable. The story is supposed to track in real time behind the scenes of these launches, which does not leave Sorkin much time to execute his oral interchanges—he feeds off that pressure. The film (evocative of a play, which Sorkin has penned many of) thrives off conversation, and with every line, Sorkin delivers hard-hitting discourse. Although the actors execute his plans via Boyle’s direction, Sorkin is at the heart of this film’s success for me, and it is an absolute abomination that the Academy snubbed him for Best Adapted Screenplay.
The acting performances in this film are exquisite; both Michael Fassbender (as Jobs) and Kate Winslet (as Joanna Hoffman, Apple’s marketing executive) were nominated for Oscars, and rightfully so. Michael Fassbender is by far one of the top five actors currently working in the film business. He has garnered immense praise for roles in Hunger, Inglourious Basterds, Shame, Prometheus, and 12 Years a Slave, and in Steve Jobs, Fassbender has killed it again. Steve Jobs was a once-in-a-generation kind of innovator, but the skeletons in his closets were always present, feeding off his stressful life. 
Jobs’s professional and personal lives often intersected, and Steve Jobs fiercely examines the crash course that resulted. Fassbender was always the best actor for the role, and with dexterity and intricacy, he owns the many personal and professional faces of his character. Kate Winslet additionally delivers an amazing performance, for which she has already won Best Supporting Actress at both the Golden Globes and the BAFTA Awards. 
Throughout Jobs’s many personal/professional-life debacles in the film, Winslet’s Joanna Hoffman is always the voice of reason that settles these issues. Winslet perfectly articulated Hoffman’s accent (a product of English mixed with her Polish and Armenian origin), and she portrays her as an incredibly strong, independent woman. It is by far one of my favorite Winslet performances of all time. Steve Jobs is rated R for language.
Steve Jobs trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEr6K1bwIVs
Academy Award nominations for Steve Jobs:
Best Actor (Michael Fassbender)
Best Supporting Actress (Kate Winslet)
Previous movies on the countdown of the Top 15 Films of 2015:
- Creed
- ’71
- Room
- Star Wars: The Force Awakens
- Beasts of No Nation
- The Martian
I am a committed fan of the Rocky franchise, and in Creed, my love for the series lives on. Stallone’s original Rocky (1976) was a flawless film with a beautiful story. And although the series came to a fitting end for Rocky as a competitive boxer in 2006’s Rocky Balboa, the character itself endures—albeit in a new, supporting role—thanks to Ryan Coogler and Creed. This film is only Coogler’s second feature of his career. The 29-year-old USC alum debuted on the scene in 2013 with Fruitvale Station, a gripping tale of the real-life events surrounding Oscar Grant’s murder by a BART officer in Oakland, CA. That film, like Creed, features Michael B. Jordan as the lead character. These two guys are completely in sync as a team, and I sure hope they continue to work together in the future. 
Coogler’s direction in Creed is nothing short of masterful. He crafts a brand new, stand-alone story, but he does so in a way that pays picturesque homage to Stallone and his beloved Rocky series. In Creed, we see so many parallels between itself and Rocky, including a strikingly similar story arc—Coogler even delivers a romantic subplot that is charmingly reminiscent of Rocky and Adrian’s original affectionate connection. Additionally, one of my favorite scenes of the entire film features Donnie watching clips of his father’s infamous fight with Rocky Balboa on a big screen in his personal home theater—Donnie eventually stands up and shadow boxes with the two legends, and as the sights and sounds of the fight build with the music, I got a zillion chills. Coogler could not have drawn that scene up any better. Although this film is especially incredible to me (given that it builds upon some of my favorite sports films of all time), Coogler gives modern fans a new story that dexterously succeeds in its own individual right. I applaud Ryan Coogler for reinvigorating one of sports’ greatest tales.
As far as acting, the obvious starting point is Sylvester Stallone. In the modern age of cinema, Stallone is a household name because of his many action-packed, macho-man movies, such as The Expendables, Escape Plan, and Grudge Match. Most simply do not respect Stallone anymore as a credible performer, at least in a critically acclaimed manner—that all changes with Creed. The original Rocky (1976) garnered Stallone Oscar nominations for both Best Original Screenplay and Best Actor (the film was additionally nominated for eight more Oscars, winning three for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Film Editing) and rightfully so.
Stallone showcased his immense acting abilities in the original film, and I was as pleased as anyone to see him steal the show in Creed—he reminded us just how good of an actor he really can be (this is a huge credit to Ryan Coogler for getting the best out of Stallone). His character’s attitudes, facial expressions, and mannerisms are vintage Rocky Balboa; yet, the character is more lonely and broken down than we’ve ever seen him. It is in his delineation of these downhearted emotions that Stallone succeeds. Hard to believe that 40 years after the original Rocky was released, Stallone will (most likely) be snagging an Oscar for his portrayal of Rocky Balboa.
With Rocky Balboa taking a more backseat role in Creed, Michael B. Jordan emerges as the story’s new lead, portraying Apollo Creed’s son Adonis. Jordan is a fantastic up-and-coming talent in Hollywood, and in Creed, he gives an incredibly gifted performance. Some have argued that Jordan was snubbed by the Academy. I do not believe this is true; even though Jordan delivered a brilliant portrayal in the film, the Academy’s five choices for Best Actor were simply too good this year. This fact does not lessen the importance of Michael B. Jordan’s performance, however. Adonis is a young, confused kid. He does not quite know who he is as a man, and this is visibly evidenced by his outward frustration and anger. Jordan nails these nuanced emotions to a tee, and in Adonis Creed, he has given film fans a new boxing hero. 
In addition to Jordan, Tessa Thompson gives a radiant performance as Donnie’s love interest Bianca, a hearing-impaired musician. As mentioned earlier, the romantic subplot of Donnie and Bianca mimics that of Rocky and Adrian from the original film, and Thompson’s beautiful acting is the fulcrum that holds this on-screen couple together—much like her performance in 2014’s Dear White People, Tessa Thompson delivers tenfold. Creed is rated PG-13 for violence, language, and some sensuality.
WINNER: Adam McKay and Charles Randolph (The Big Short)
Luckily, director Yann Demange (this is his debut feature film) focuses instead on the Jekyll-and-Hyde-nature of the civil discord. It was incredibly difficult to know whether someone was truly on the side he/she purported to support or not—one minute Gary comes across someone who is sympathetic to his plight, and the next minute it appears those motivations were traitorous. With help from Gregory Burke’s thrilling script, Demange depicts the double-crossing conspiracy of the Troubles masterfully. The cinematography is kinetic, in all the best ways, and Demange provides enough screen time to characters on all sides of the conflict in order to best delineate the inherent untrustworthiness of all parties involved.
Although the film features some fantastic supporting performances from actors like Sean Harris, Richard Dormer, and Barry Keoghan, the star of the film is Jack O’Connell as Gary Hook. O’Connell is one of the most prominent up-and-coming actors in world cinema, and I am quickly becoming a huge fan of his work. In 2014, O’Connell shined in films such as Starred Up (which I ranked as my No. 4 film of the year) and Unbroken, and in ’71, he has added another award-worthy performance to his filmography. Gary Hook is both tough and sensitive, and O’Connell skillfully portrays this personality dichotomy in much the same way as he did with a similar character in Starred Up. The film truly places you on the edge of your seat throughout, and in every gripping moment, we fear for Gary—O’Connell nails this trepidation with a unique dexterity. ’71 is rated R for strong violence, disturbing images, and language throughout.
The Reel Countdown 