BlackBerry, the acclaimed drama starring Jay Baruchel and Glenn Howerton, has just landed on Netflix.
The film dramatises the story of the iconic mobile phone, charting the relationship between co-founder Mike Lazaridis (Baruchel) and co-CEO Jim Balsillie (Howerton) as their company goes through several highs and lows.
Directed by Matt Johnson, who starred in the film and co-wrote the screenplay with Matthew Miller, the real-life drama had a lowkey theatrical release back in 2023, but it is now likely to find a larger audience in the UK after it was added to Netflix today (19 July).
Boasting a strong supporting cast including Cary Elwes and Rich Sommer, BlackBerry garnered critical acclaim upon its release, with the film currently having an impressive approval rating of 97% on Rotten Tomatoes from 211 reviews.
“With intelligence as sharp as its humour, BlackBerry takes a terrifically entertaining look at the rise and fall of a generation-defining gadget,” reads the site’s critical consensus, with Time Out dubbing it a “blackly comic corporate drama”.
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Empire Magazine was similarly positive as they praised the actor’s performance, writing: “A corporate comedy of errors – but the film really shines thanks to Howerton, whose towering, shark-like performance makes him a villain for the ages.”
This sentiment was echoed by The Ringer as they called Howerton the “MVP” of the film, while the Chicago Sun-Times noted: “This is one of those whip-smart, character and story-driven gems that grabs you from the start and never lets go.”
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“The most important aspect of BlackBerry is the fact that this is not a hero’s journey for anyone involved; this is a story about what it means to be smart in some ways and dumb in others,” wrote Consequence, while the Los Angeles Times called it “compelling”.
While Netflix has just added the real-life drama to their catalogue, the streamer is due to remove the “tense” and “immensely thrilling” 71 in the coming weeks, with the Jack O’Connell-led film set to leave the library on 4 August.
BlackBerry is streaming now on Netflix.
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Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media. His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.