Steve Wozniak is in the unique position of knowing every detail of the true story behind the founding of Apple in 1976 - because he was there and actually lived it. So, he was somewhat expectedly taken aback by the creative license that filmmakers took with jOBS as they tried to recreate the formative years of Steve Jobs in a format that would be appealing for mass consumption. "What I saw was just so far from anything that really happened or said in those days," Wozniak told GMA.
Wozniak seemed especially troubled by the idea that Steve Jobs was given his persona of his later years as a young man. Wozniak said that portraying Jobs in 1976 as some kind of tech visionary was just silly, because it was absolutely not the case. Of course, in defense of the jOBS filmmakers, they are trying to tell a story that unfolded over many years in just a few hours. To portray every detail accurately would never be possible, nor would it make for an entertaining film. That said, no one has a right to be more critical of the film than Wozniak, since he’s the only person who can actually set the record straight.
When asked how he thinks Jobs would feel about the portion of the film that Wozniak previewed, he said, "I think he would have been a little offended and embarrassed by it just like myself… I think he would say that was, you know, a little bit too phony." Wozniak did go on to acknowledge that he’s only seen brief snippets of the film that were not in context. He said there’s a chance that the film in its entirety might be very good and that his comments were pointed only at the scenes that he has viewed personally. Ashton Kutcher has garnered mostly positive reviews for his portrayal of the late Steve Jobs, but the film will not hit theaters until April 19th, on the 37th anniversary of the founding of Apple.
Wozniak seemed especially troubled by the idea that Steve Jobs was given his persona of his later years as a young man. Wozniak said that portraying Jobs in 1976 as some kind of tech visionary was just silly, because it was absolutely not the case. Of course, in defense of the jOBS filmmakers, they are trying to tell a story that unfolded over many years in just a few hours. To portray every detail accurately would never be possible, nor would it make for an entertaining film. That said, no one has a right to be more critical of the film than Wozniak, since he’s the only person who can actually set the record straight.
When asked how he thinks Jobs would feel about the portion of the film that Wozniak previewed, he said, "I think he would have been a little offended and embarrassed by it just like myself… I think he would say that was, you know, a little bit too phony." Wozniak did go on to acknowledge that he’s only seen brief snippets of the film that were not in context. He said there’s a chance that the film in its entirety might be very good and that his comments were pointed only at the scenes that he has viewed personally. Ashton Kutcher has garnered mostly positive reviews for his portrayal of the late Steve Jobs, but the film will not hit theaters until April 19th, on the 37th anniversary of the founding of Apple.
