One of the perks of finding a movie or television series I really love
is that it provides an entry point to countless other movies and series
through its actors. My favorite series is LOST, which is rich
and diverse enough in characters and their histories that there are
about a hundred actors I can see in another setting and instantly
identify them. Smaller is the list of LOST actors I actively seek out, and at the top of that list is Jorge Garcia, who played the expansively compassionate Hurley.
I have delighted in Garcia’s post-LOST appearances on How I Met Your Mother, Alcatraz and Once Upon a Time, a series whose LOST
connections are almost too numerous to count, but until last month, the
only movies I had seen him in were several years old. If it weren’t
for his involvement, I don’t know how long it would have taken me to
hear about iSteve, the Ryan Perez-directed movie that spoofs the
life of Steve Jobs, but thanks to a Facebook tip-off, I was able to
watch it within days of its being released on the website Funny or Die.
Given that my dad spent over three decades teaching computer science at
the college level, I had some interest in and knowledge of the rocky
path that Steve Jobs followed to techie superstardom, particularly since
accounts of his life were so prevalent after his death in 2011. Those
stories usually mentioned Steve Wozniak, painting him as a quieter,
humbler man whose computer genius may have exceeded that of Jobs. When I
saw him at a motivational seminar last summer, I was impressed with his
message and his cheerful attitude, and I’ve remained especially drawn
to his side of the story.
iSteve is primarily the tale of Jobs, which he narrates as part
of a presentation in a venue not revealed until the film ends. However,
it is also the story of Wozniak, and in many ways, it is a greater
tribute to his perseverance and devotion. Justin Long plays the
charismatic Jobs, who always manages to bounce back after even the most
crushing defeats, while Garcia is the ever-faithful Wozniak, who tinkers
with computers for the sheer love of it and follows Jobs out of loyalty
even when his friend barely seems to acknowledge his existence.
The movie is classified as a spoof, so it becomes difficult sometimes to
extract the threads of fact from the outright fabrications. However,
the general trajectory of Jobs’ career can be found in this film, and
the dynamics of his friendship with Wozniak seem to reflect much of what
I have read about them. Other aspects, such as a longstanding
flirtation between Jobs and Melinda Gates (Michaela Watkins), seem to
have no basis in reality.
Given Long’s breakout role as the hip young Mac opposite a schlubby PC
in a popular, long-running series of Apple ads, the very fact that he is
playing Jobs feels amusingly appropriate. Meanwhile, the cuddly brand
of geekery Garcia expressed so well as Hurley feels perfectly at home in
Wozniak. Beyond these two familiar faces, the only cast member I
recognized was Big Bang Theory’s John Ross Bowie as rival John
Sculley, though several characters are prominent public figures,
particularly Bill Gates (James Urbaniak).
As comedies go, I would say that iSteve is fairly understated.
There were times I laughed aloud, but most of the action was pretty
straightforward with just a quirky touch here and there. However, I
found it very accessible and less dry than many biopics tend to be. My
boyfriend Will agreed to watch it with me, expecting to be bored, and
instead enjoyed it from beginning to end. It helps that it’s a
fast-moving film that clocks in at just over an hour. There’s a bit of
foul language and lewdness, but for the most part, it’s a reasonably
clean movie that encourages interest in two great innovators and the
tug-of-war that often occurs between entrepreneurship and friendship.
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