If you can remember fax machines you’ll love Blackberry, the movie. If you don’t, you’ll still love this fascinating insider mocumentary about how the famous phone came to be. Loads of lessons to learn here.
The action starts in the mid-90s where Canadian Mike Lazaridis (Jay Baruchel) and his best mate Doug (Matt Johnson) have an idea that will revolutionize the communications industry. A device that combines a phone, text messages and emails all in the palm of your hand.
They set off to present the idea to cutthroat entrepreneur Jim Balsillie (Glenn Howerton). But the meeting is a disaster and the boys return home to their team disappointed techy mates.
As luck would have it Balsillie gets fired and seeks out the boys with an offer they can’t refuse.
Somehow through the chaos the team produces the BlackBerry phone, a must have item for all businessmen.
The movie raises issues of friendship, loyalty and how much you’re prepared to risk to see your dream come true.
As the credits buzzed with the sound of old phones I pondered:
- Echoing the 1980s Greed Is Good era the movie is a great reminder about the impact of focusing on the dollar and believing your own BS;
- It also reminds us about how far we’ve come in terms of how we communicate with each other, both through technology and verbal interactions;
- There’s an excellent marketing strategy that involves being loud and obnoxious to draw attention to yourself thereby creating desire and demand for your product;
- Ultimately though the movie asks the question, how much are you prepared to sell out your values to make money.
For more information go to Luna Cinemas.
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