Home | Message in the Movies

MESSAGE IN THE MOVIES

Ferris Bueller once said: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

Life certainly moved fast for the handheld device known as the BlackBerry. The first-generation pager came out in 1996. In 2009 BlackBerry devices held over 56% of the smartphone market. By 2016, the BlackBerry was considered obsolete.

Rapid success and eventual decline seemed inevitable for a gizmo developed by a Canadian company known as Research in Motion.

The story of any large multinational company is far too complicated to explain easily, but it makes for a fast and often funny film when it focuses on a few distinctive personalities and the cadre of computer geeks tasked to bring a working prototype to market.

We are first introduced to Mike Lazaridis (Baruchel) and his long-time friend Douglas Fregin (Matt Johnson) as they develop their concept for their game-changing invention. They are in the middle of a financial crisis connected to an earlier product and lack the ability to pitch their latest idea. During one unsuccessful attempt to explain their concept they are overheard by Jim Balsillie (Howerton), an entrepreneurial type who is willing to raise funds and aggressively push open the doors to move things ahead. While Mike is initially interested in this new partnership, Douglas is highly skeptical. While the boys drag their feet, Jim finds himself exasperated trying to rush a prototype to investors in time to beat the competition.

Things eventually come together for Research in Motion as their growing product development and production facilities create successful generations of the popular smartphone.

The second half of the film jumps ahead in time to show how such fame and fortune can create false security and encourage serious ethical missteps. Small moral runarounds from the past can grow into major legal liabilities; friendships will be tested and new competitors will appear from Apple and Android smartphones.

The smart script is able to show empathy for its main characters, caught up in a world of possibilities and pitfalls, excited with new technologies and familiar temptations.

One scene in the movie shares some of the criticism that faced this device, nicknamed the “Crack Berry” for the addictive way its users responded to incoming text messages. In hindsight, these fears were minor compared to the time now we spend looking on our phones, tablets and other devices, amusing ourselves with constant distractions.

Like reading movie reviews.

Halo and Pitchfork Rating:

Four halos: The creation, production and marketing of new technology, in the form of a moral tale.
Two pitchforks: Pervasive strong swearing; the sins of pride and greed.

Comment:

Do you have comments about this movie or movie review? E-mail your comments. (Your name and UM affiliation must be supplied in order for your comments to be posted.)