BlackBerry

Grade: A

I didn’t comprehend everything that was happening throughout BlackBerry, but that didn’t matter to me. Roger Ebert used to say a movie isn’t about what it’s about as much as HOW it’s about it. BlackBerry is a thrilling invigorating movie – almost to an exhausting end – and it’s one of the year’s best.

A BlackBerry is now “that phone everyone used to have before they got their iPhone,” but up until the mid 2000s, it was the future. The movie is filmed in a crude, shaky, handheld style that is somewhere between The Office and a documentary. Conversations between characters have an organic, natural rhythm – the kind you can’t rehearse. If someone gets tongue-tied and has a vowel movement that they quickly correct, there’s no “Cut! Take 2” – they go with it!

One of just many things BlackBerry accomplishes resplendently is taking us into the world of a fast-talking, cutthroat business. They call it the MoneyBro genre. I liked Oliver Stone’s Wall Street. I liked Boiler Room more, and have spent the last 23 years comparing lesser, similar films to it. You could compare BlackBerry to Boiler Room, which has not only met its match, but its superior. It works on other levels, too. The biggest laugh for me happened in a waiting room scene before a big sales pitch, and it was provided by Glenn Howerton, from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Looking him up on IMDb, I was taken aback to find he’s a pretty good-looking guy. Here, he is male-pattern bald and uptight. It’s not only an amazing physical transformation, but a sneaky multilayered character. He gives us a wide range of notes and beats, and it’s now my favorite supporting performance of the last few years.

I haven’t even gotten to the plot summary yet. See what I mean about Ebert’s statement regarding the how and why being more important? We begin in 1996, with the company Research In Motion, headed up by a team of tech nerds including Mike and Doug, who go around pitching an idea they have for a combination cell phone, computer, email machine, pager…and you can even send text messages. My second favorite performance in the movie is Jay Baruchel as Mike. He does powerful, dedicated work, and ages himself well in the 10 year span of the story. Doug is played by director Matt Johnson, who spends the first half being fun second banana comic relief, and then has a poignant scene later on that reveals so much more. We spend a significant portion in 1996, then jump to 2003, then to 2007, when Steve Jobs unveils…the thing you’re probably reading this on. And, needless to say, stuff gets tense for the characters we’re following.

BlackBerry is a series of one delightful scene after another. It’s funny, it’s enjoyable, it’s thrilling, and when I wasn’t engrossed in the story, I was mentally stepping back to marvel at how well it all amalgamates. It’s almost dizzying. When a movie occupies its own specific niche that’s new to me, it’s a great feeling. BlackBerry does that.

Grade: A