BlackBerry (2023)
Movie rating: 9/10
One of the most popular trends in Hollywood right now, other than film industry workers going on strike, is what RedLetterMedia calls the “corporate product biopic”. The earliest example I can remember is David Fincher’s Facebook epic The Social Network back in 2010. But the genre seems to have really kicked off in 2023. In the past several months we’ve seen the release of films such as Tetris, about the race to patent and license the classic video game; Air, on Nike’s development of the Air Jordan sneakers; Flamin’ Hot, detailing the invention of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos; and most recently BlackBerry, which tells the story of the pioneering line of mobile phones that briefly dominated the industry. Let me know if I left any out.
Your guess is as good as mine for the reasons why this trend has taken hold now. My theory is that the previous trend, biopics of popular musicians, was starting to lose steam — partly because they were running out of musicians that would make good subjects for the silver-screen treatment, but also because that genre is particularly subject to cliché. As far back as 2007, musician biopics were being lampooned in Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. Still, there was enough fandom out there for the musical biopic to peak at the box office with Bohemian Rhapsody, and in my view in terms of moviemaking quality with Elvis.
While there have been a few corporate product biopics released this year, BlackBerry is the first I’ve seen. Directed by Matt Johnson from a screenplay he co-wrote with Matthew Miller, BlackBerry has a couple distinguishing factors that compelled me to catch a screening at the local multiplex. Chief among them was Glenn Howerton. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia has become one of my all-time favourite shows in recent years, and Howerton’s Dennis Reynolds possibly my favourite among “The Gang”. Having watched the entire series, I’ve been increasingly looking into the cast’s work outside their signature show. Fool’s Paradise, Charlie Day’s cinematic debut as a writer and director, bombed at the box office and critics tore it to shreds. BlackBerry, on the other hand, garnered rave reviews. When Vanity Fair headlined its recent interview “Glenn Howerton, Oscar Contender”, I knew I had to check this movie out.
I’m pleased to say that Howerton’s performance as Jim Balsillie, co-CEO of BlackBerry manufacturer Research in Motion (RIM), more than lives up to the hype. What makes Howerton as Balsillie such perfect casting is how the actor takes his talent for erupting in volcanic rage, used to such great comedic effect on It’s Always Sunny, and uses it here for dramatic purposes.
Early on a character describes Balsillie as a “scary bald man”, or words to that effect. Compared to RIM co-founders Mike Lazaridis (Jay Baruchel) and Doug Fregin (Johnson), who are depicted as brilliant geeks but with little business skill, Howerton’s Balsillie is a ruthless, intimidating businessman extremely skilled at negotiations. Yet there are moments when we see a more vulnerable person beneath Balsillie’s aggressive facade: usually when he is caught off-guard and threatened with failure, such as being fired from his original employer at the start of the film. In each case, he quickly reasserts control and channels his rage into dominating any competitors. It’s a terrific, immensely watchable performance.
To my surprise, Jay Baruchel also shines in the role of Lazaridis, who provides an interesting contrast to Balsillie. Where Balsillie is merciless, angry, loud, and skilled at business, but lacking when it comes to technical skills, Lazaridis is initially quiet, withdrawn, awkward, poor at business but highly skilled at overcoming technical problems others saw as unsolvable (an old newspaper clipping on the wall of his office refers to young Lazaridis as a “boy genius”). As the film goes on, Lazaridis becomes more and more similar to Balsillie, eventually becoming something of a ruthless and domineering businessman himself. Baruchel has been an agreeable enough presence in the past in comedy fare like Tropic Thunder and She’s Out of My League. Here, he gives a solid dramatic performance that I didn’t know he was capable of, utterly disappearing into the role.
Spoilers follow for those unfamiliar with historical events the film is based on.
Between the two is Fregin, best friend of Lazaridis and co-founder of RIM. Compared to his partner, Fregin is more confident and outgoing. He’s portrayed as a fun-loving geek, chiefly responsible for organizing movie nights at RIM. As the partnership between Lazaridis and Balsillie helps RIM become an industry leader and BlackBerry the top mobile phone, Fregin gradually finds himself pushed aside.
The evolution of RIM in the film shows how the logic of capitalism forces a company to act in a certain way. Balsillie recruits Charles Purdy (Michael Ironside), who is perhaps even more terrifying than himself, as the new COO. Gone are RIM movie nights, as the bosses force their workers to perform miracles or else lose their jobs. Lazaridis turns on Fregin, seeing him as an obstacle when Apple’s introduction of the iPhone threatens to render the BlackBerry obsolete. Co-CEOs Lazaridis and Balsillie grow increasingly desperate as they grasp at straws to maintain their market dominance. Meanwhile, Balsillie’s legally dubious business practices threaten to catch up with them.
Even with the knowledge that this story will end with the fall of BlackBerry and RIM, the film is always compelling, adroitly balancing comedy with more dramatic moments. The influence of The Social Network is evident in Jim McCarrol’s pulsing electronic score, which I enjoyed as a fan of synth music.
What BlackBerry does even better than The Social Network, in my opinion, is to put the titular product in its historical context. The film starts with words from a man I initially assumed was Marshall McLuhan, but who is apparently not, about the possibilities of being able to work from anywhere in the world through modern communication — something more relevant since COVID-19 normalized working from home. The opening credits overlay archival footage that depict the evolution of wireless communication in pop culture from Star Trek’s communicators onwards. All of it helps us examine the smartphone, a piece of technology now ubiquitous but that was once unimaginable, from a different angle.
The fact that this movie also traces the downfall of RIM makes it more interesting in my view than The Social Network, which was released at a time when Facebook still dominated social media. By showing how the iPhone made the BlackBerry obsolete, the movie shows us the dialectical process of things turning into their opposite: of success becoming failure, of today’s trendsetter becoming tomorrow’s also-ran. It’s fascinating to watch Lazaridis struggle to respond to iPhone’s pioneering touchscreen. Addressing skeptical executives looking for an “iPhone killer”, Lazaridis initially defends the BlackBerry’s built-in keyboard, saying the satisfying “click” is integral to BlackBerry’s appeal. Feeling the pressure, he shifts to trying to develop a mobile phone with a touchscreen, in essence accepting that Apple has made his own flagship product obsolete.
There is a bit of anti-China sentiment running through BlackBerry, which isn’t surprising coming from a Canadian production, given the anti-China hysteria pushed by this country’s ruling class. In one of the first scenes, Lazaridis tries to fix a modem with an annoying hissing sound, which happens to be made in China. We’re meant to understand that products made in China are inferior to those built in North America. When Lazaridis finally cracks and decides BlackBerry will make an imitation iPhone, Purdy tells him the only way to get it built in time is to offshore production to China. When the BlackBerry Storm finally arrives, Lazaridis finds that each one of them emits the same hissing sound he heard in the beginning. Closing titles reveal that the BlackBerry Storm was almost universally inoperable, and that Verizon sued RIM to make good their massive financial loss.
Earlier I mentioned Howerton’s performance being one of the main selling points that drew me to BlackBerry over other corporate product biopics. The second, if I’m being honest, is the movie’s Canadian setting. It’s rare to see that when U.S. films dominate movie theatres in Canada, and a nice change of pace. BlackBerry is an engrossing film with great performances that will prompt many viewer to take a new look at a slice of recent history that helped shape the way we communicate today.
