BlackBerry

Name: BlackBerry
Genre: Biography, Drama, History, Comedy
Released: May 12, 2023
Duration: 119 min
Rating: 78
Cast: Cary Elwes, Glenn Howerton, Jay Baruchel, Mark Critch, Matt Johnson

2023

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 46 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 40 Ratings

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7.1	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 40 Ratings

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Blackberry (US Trailer 1)

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Movie Details & Credits

IFC Films | Release Date: May 12, 2023 | NR

Starring: Cary Elwes, Glenn Howerton, Jay Baruchel, Mark Critch, Matt Johnson, Michael Ironside, Michelle Giroux, Rich Sommer, Saul Rubinek, SungWon Cho

Summary: The “true story” of the meteoric rise & catastrophic demise of the world’s first smartphone, BlackBerry is a whirlwind ride through a ruthlessly competitive Silicon Valley.

Director: Matt Johnson

Genre(s): Biography, Drama, History, Comedy

Rating: NR

Runtime: 119 min

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

Chris Knight

May 11, 2023

It’s clever and backed up by enough tech-speak to give viewers a sense of the nuts and bolts of things without wandering into the weeds. Read full review

Kyle Smith

May 12, 2023

BlackBerry is a biography of a once-great business that is fascinating enough on its own terms without being reshaped to fit a narrative formula. Read full review

Michael Phillips

May 11, 2023

BlackBerry doesn’t sermonize or push the comedy or falsify the dramatic dynamics of wildly contrasting personalities. It’s a small but quite beautiful achievement, which you could also say about the smartphone that could, and did. For a while. Read full review

Slashfilm Rafael Motamayor

Mar 16, 2023

BlackBerry may not get the awards love "The Social Network" did, but it does turn a fascinating story into a very entertaining film. Read full review

Dylan Roth

May 15, 2023

Compared to the crowd-pleasing Tetris or Air, BlackBerry plays a bit dour and dry, but the film is better for it. It’s not romantic or idealistic, but it is intriguing. Read full review

Mark Kennedy

May 10, 2023

The gripping and hugely enjoyable BlackBerry is about the famous — and later infamous — Research in Motion gadget that helped trigger the global smartphone era as we know it, before sliding into obsolescence. Read full review

Screen Rant Graeme Guttmann

May 12, 2023

It's full of fast-talking tech nerds and morally compromised corporate A-holes, it bites off a bit more than it can chew in telling the story of Research in Motion, but it's still a good time, reminiscent of mid-budget dramedies that have all but disappeared in recent years. Read full review

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User Reviews

JGNYC

May 14, 2023

I really enjoyed it. If you are a fan of Silicon Valley and/or if you remember when Blackberries were everywhere, it's a fascinating and darkly comic story.

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

bigtech

May 14, 2023

Entertaining and surprisingly insightful. As a computer geek, some great details, and the occasional ****

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

Doomnarok

Jun 2, 2023

Glenn Howerton is an absolute star in Blackberry. His 15+ years of playing Dennis Reynolds on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia made him the perfect casting.

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

JoA1973

Jun 4, 2023

Far more engaging than a movie about a cell phone should be. Good cast, solid writing, competent direction.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

liamexe

Jun 5, 2023

Cheap as chips is the movie. They have a few 2000s sets, but they're only little things. There are a few automobiles and a few offices displayed, but that is about it. Basically, a camera could accomplish anything better than anything else. How difficult is it to video a couple unrelatedCheap as chips is the movie. They have a few 2000s sets, but they're only little things. There are a few automobiles and a few offices displayed, but that is about it. Basically, a camera could accomplish anything better than anything else. How difficult is it to video a couple unrelated cars? The camera work is awful and incredibly sloppy. It feels like a poor theatre performance because the handheld camera is seldom steady and we frequently only see faces or individuals without much in the way of set design. It is a $5 million historical drama that looks like a $5 million drama. However, the general plot makes it work.… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

JLuis_001

May 18, 2023

BlackBerry, as the name indicates, is a film about the story of this line of mobile phones and joins the ongoing trend in recent years of making series and films about technology products and their creators.

I recognize the style and pacing are much more relaxed than many other stories I'veBlackBerry, as the name indicates, is a film about the story of this line of mobile phones and joins the ongoing trend in recent years of making series and films about technology products and their creators.

I recognize the style and pacing are much more relaxed than many other stories I've seen of this type, which is quite a nice change.
It also blends humor with drama in similar measures, although its structure hints at where it draws certain influences from, because in the end, the story is one that feels very familiar even if you know little about what happened to the company when smartphones, especially the iPhone, took over the market.
And there is no better known story in the world than that of an empire - in this case a technological one - that achieves success and then crumbles.

Overall the film works quite well without anything extraordinary to mention, but I must say that out of the whole project if anyone should be singled out for having surprised me it is Jay Baruchel, because even beyond the changes in his appearance, for the first time in his entire career he showed that he has something more to demonstrate in what until now I considered his very limited repertoire.

It's not the slickest film of its genre, but it's entertaining and compelling. That's good enough for what it is.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

tedbarnett

May 25, 2023

Godawful unrealistic dialogue tied to a cartoonish depiction of a true story.

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

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95	#95 Best Movie of 2023
75	#75 Most Discussed Movie of 2023