Unlike most “business bio” movies like the Nike, Tetris, and Facebook ones, BlackBerry is not the story of success. Sure, it’s the story of early success but BlackBerry ultimately went away. Apple ate their lunch. And since I never owned a BlackBerry, I didn’t know the meat and potatoes of the story. I was primed to find this flick interesting.

The movie is about the nerds and the corporate sharks who invented and sold the BlackBerry as the first-to-market Smart Phone. How it was a big hit with business people and the elite… and how it all came crashing down (and not just because they were out-visioned by Steve Jobs).

For most of its running time, this is a fast-paced, crackling smart film that really had me bought in. I liked the actors, even the insufferable cussmonsters, and I was intrigued by the ’90s time machine and reminder of where tech was at the time. It was startling seeing Jay Baruchel as an actual adult (time is the crucible in which we burn) though not as startling as an old and massive Michael Ironside (as intimidating as ever).

The film suffers a bit from its camerawork. The camera operator must have been confused and thought he was making a Jason Bourne flick and not a nerdy tech movie. It was weird and unnecessary how shaky the shakycam got, how it would zoom in on faces in a way that made me think I was a dermatologist. It doesn’t ruin the movie or even hurt it all that much, but it was distracting.

What does ultimately hurt the movie for me is the final act. It’s just not as compelling or propulsive… the script jumps around a bit too much and focuses too much on random plot points like one executives attempt to buy an NHL team. Yeah, I’m sure that happened but it took up a lot of screen time.

<RANDOM ASIDE>For a movie geeky enough to include short clips of the movies Tron and Hackers, I was inordinately distracted by one of the techies referencing I.D. Software. Because it’s not I.D. (identification)… it’s id (as in id, ego, and superego). That is all. Moving on. </RANDOM ASIDE>

Ultimately, as far as these types of corporate movies go, this is a pretty good one. It’s a niche enough story to be innovative and informative, it’s well acted, well written, and well shot (if you want to think your in an action movie while watching a nerdy drama).

Score: 84