Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine

Oscar-winner Alex Gibney’s fascinating documentary examines not only the man in the machine but also the world those machines created. What sparked the global outpouring of grief when Jobs died, and how did his values affect those of Apple’s millions of customers? Gibney and editor Michael J. Palmer blend archival footage with contemporary interviews, telling Jobs’ story through his own words and anecdotes as well as those of coworkers, journalists, even the monk who was his spiritual adviser. Striving to understand a man who was a volatile enigma even to those closest to him, the filmmakers return periodically to beautifully filmed shots of Buddhist temples in Japan, Zen gardens and peaceful groves of motionless trees. Was this the inspiration Jobs tried to channel into the products Apple created? How did a man who so valued enlightenment act in often brutal self-interest when it came to work and family? Reaching beyond biography, the film includes chapters about Apple’s historical controversial business practices, and questions our own responsibility as consumers. Gibney and his collaborators have crafted a compelling documentary about a complicated, polarizing man who, for better or for worse, undeniably changed the world. —Laura Henneman