Books and films surrounding Steve Jobs

It’s Steve Jobs Day again today! We all know Steve Jobs as the brilliant mind behind the Apple brand. Sadly, Steve Jobs passed away in 2011 at the age of 56. He was, of course, far too young, and as a result, we can no longer enjoy his innovative technological ideas. Fortunately, a number of books and films have been released that allow us to continue appreciating his personality. Below, we’ve compiled a list of all these books and films.

To start: the most important book about Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs himself wanted his life to be documented in a book. When he became ill, he knew he didn’t have much time left and wanted to leave a record of his life. He gave author Walter Isaacson access to his private life, and Isaacson followed him closely for an extended period. This resulted in the best-selling biography of Jobs’ life, simply titled: Steve Jobs (2011). The cover of this book features a black-and-white photo of Jobs himself. The book is a whopping 656 pages long, so you’ll need some time. Luckily, with colder weather approaching, it’s the perfect time to curl up on the couch with a blanket and dive into this book!

Film: Jobs (2013)

In this film, actor Ashton Kutcher plays Steve Jobs. Up to that point, this was one of Kutcher’s most serious roles, and he performed well. The screenplay for this film is based on the biography mentioned above. The writer for this film was Matt Whiteley. Unfortunately, this film wasn’t a huge success. Since the film tried to cover everything in Steve Jobs’ life, it became a bit too much. The film starts with Jobs’ time at Reed College and ends with his return to Apple. In the U.S., the film grossed $16.1 million against a budget of $12 million.

Film: Steve Jobs (2015)

Actor Michael Fassbender plays the lead role in this film, portraying Steve Jobs. Other notable actors in this film include Kate Winslet and Seth Rogen. This film resembles more of a play and can be divided into three parts. The first part follows Jobs just before the launch of the Macintosh (1984), the second revolves around the launch of NeXT (1988), and the final part focuses on the launch of the iMac (1998). While the script is based on the Steve Jobs biography, there are many fictional interactions in the film. It portrays Jobs as a difficult man (which he was), but not everything in the film is factual. The dialogue is fast-paced and entertaining to watch. The writer for this film was Aaron Sorkin, one of Hollywood’s best screenwriters.

Film: Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine (2015)

Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine is a documentary directed and produced by Alex Gibney. This documentary highlights all of Steve Jobs’ major life events through archival footage and testimonies. It focuses particularly on Jobs’ early years. During this period, Jobs was not a well-liked man and did many questionable things. After his time at NeXT and Pixar, and upon his return to Apple, he had matured; although he still had sharp edges, he understood his weaknesses better. The documentary doesn’t cover Jobs’ later years as much.

There’s plenty of material to celebrate Steve Jobs Day. Fortunately, these books and films exist, allowing the story of one of the most influential people in recent history to be told and retold.