'Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine' Film Debuts at SXSW, Eddy Cue Calls It 'Inaccurate' and 'Mean-Spirited'

Following the premiere of Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine this weekend at SXSW in Austin, Texas, reviews of the film have begun circulating in the media. The Guardian notes that the documentary portrays Jobs as "a man with dazzling talent and monomaniacal focus, but utterly lacking in empathy," with director Alex Gibney showing several examples of the late Apple co-founder's less-desirable behaviour that are typically overshadowed by his successes.

Steve Jobs Movie

"Yet this man, whose belief in his own righteousness was unshakeable, also terminated Apple’s philanthropic programmes, presided over huge corporate tax evasion, paid Chinese workers making iPhones a pittance, and only stumped up maintenance for his first daughter after dragging his ex-girlfriend through the courts, claiming that she was promiscuous and he was infertile, until a DNA test proved otherwise. Finally, he agreed to pay $500 a month – he was worth $200m at the time."

Apple senior executive Eddy Cue was quick to express his disappointment in the documentary, describing the film on Twitter as "an inaccurate and mean-spirited view of my friend" and "not a reflection of the Steve I knew." Cue added that the best portrayal of Jobs is in the upcoming book "Becoming Steve Jobs," which he describes as "well done and first to get it right."

The Hollywood Reporter has a nearly equal assessment of The Man in the Machine, describing the film as a "two hour-plus corrective to uncritical idolatry of [Jobs], a film that roots around in his misdeeds and mean traits, not in search of a complete portrait, but in the spirit of a Judgment Day prosecutor who knows damn well the defendant was not a holy man."

Other publications that reviewed the documentary include Variety, TechnologyTell and Indiewire. The film is expected to debut in theaters later this year.

Popular Stories

iOS 18

Here Are Apple's Full iOS 18.5 Release Notes

Tuesday May 6, 2025 2:17 pm PDT by
Apple today seeded the release candidate version of iOS 18.5 to developers and public beta testers, giving us a look at the final version of the update that will be provided to the public next week. With the release candidate, Apple provided release notes, so we have a more complete look at the new features that are included in the update, including those that weren't found during the beta...
siri glow

iPhone Users Now Able to Submit Claims in $95 Million Siri Spying Lawsuit

Wednesday May 7, 2025 11:40 am PDT by
If you owned a Siri-compatible device and had an accidental Siri activation between September 17, 2014 and December 31, 2024, you could be eligible for a payment from Apple as part of a class action lawsuit settlement. Apple in January agreed to pay $95 million to settle a class action lawsuit involving Siri spying accusations, and a website to distribute the funds has now been set up and...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17: What's New With the Cameras

Friday May 2, 2025 3:52 pm PDT by
We've still got months to go before the new iPhone 17 models come out, but a combination of dummy models and leaks have given us some insight into what we can expect in terms of camera changes. Apple is adding new camera features, and changing the design of the camera bump for some models. You might be skeptical of dummy models, but over the years, they've proven to be a highly accurate...
iOS 18

Apple Says iOS 18.5 Coming Soon, Here is What's New

Monday May 5, 2025 8:19 am PDT by
In its press release for the new Pride Band today, Apple said that iOS 18.5 is "upcoming," following more than a month of beta testing. We expect the iOS 18.5 Release Candidate to be released this week, and this should be the final beta version, barring any last-minute bugs or changes. The software update should then be released to the general public next week. iOS 18.5 is a relatively...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Foldable iPhone Said to Have Two Key Advantages

Monday May 5, 2025 6:41 am PDT by
Apple plans to release its first foldable iPhone next year, according to several reporters and analysts who cover the company. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the foldable iPhone will offer two key advantages over other foldable smartphones. First, he said the foldable iPhone will have a "nearly invisible" crease when unfolded. This means the device's...
Nineth iOS 19 Feature

iOS 19 Beta is a Month Away With These New Features for Your iPhone

Thursday May 8, 2025 7:37 am PDT by
The first iOS 19 beta is just one month away, and there are already many new features and changes that are expected with it. Apple should seed the first iOS 19 beta to developers immediately following the WWDC 2025 keynote, which is scheduled for Monday, June 9. Following beta testing, the update should be released to the general public in September. Below, we recap the key iOS 19 rumors...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Apple's Foldable iPhone Display Tech May Set New Industry Standard

Thursday May 8, 2025 3:29 am PDT by
Apple's upcoming foldable iPhone will feature a new type of display panel developed by Samsung that has never been used in a foldable product, claims a source with links to Apple's supply chain. According to the account yeux1122 on the Korean Naver blog, the foldable iPhone will use a custom display process for which Apple will hold branding trademark rights, and that meets Apple's stringent ...
AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Tuesday April 29, 2025 1:30 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...

Top Rated Comments

dstankus Avatar
133 months ago
Sure Eddy; if SJ had made me a multi-zillionaire I'd probably feel that way too...

My own recollection from reading various stories over the years is that he was indeed a brilliant executive but a not very nice human being.

Since I like my iPhone very much and have never met him in person, this is OK with me.
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)
IbisDoc Avatar
133 months ago
Finally, an accurate portrayal of the guy.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JoEw Avatar
133 months ago
You're watching it wrong.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
markcres Avatar
133 months ago
Best quote of the day. Everyone knows that Steve was no saint. At the same time he did remarkably wonderful things. Seems the haters are gonna hate.

"no saint"?
You mean he was a complete *******. The way he treated his own child!
Apple are unhappy because a film is depicting their glorified computer salesman as a flawed human rather than as a God-like figure. Corporate fascists want to re-write history according to their own false twisted ideal.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Edd.Dantes Avatar
133 months ago
Best quote of the day. Everyone knows that Steve was no saint. At the same time he did remarkably wonderful things. Seems the haters are gonna hate.

True but there is nothing wrong in showing the other side of the coin. History shouldn't paint him as a benevolent deity. He was a dirtbag for most his adult life but so am I and many others. I wouldn't want people to make me out to be something amazing, just because I created some amazing things.... Or oversaw their creation.

Too many people in this world think he was the Ghandi of electronics and that's just not true. Not even close.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mr. Gates Avatar
133 months ago
If I was Eddie I would say the same thing.
Even though the Documentary is 100% accurate.
If you compare another CEO (Name I will not mention ;) ) in regards to to philanthropic work, Jobs was a heartless, self serving,opportunist/capitalist who rode off the technological advancements of others while stealing, giving little to no credit where credit was due and suing others.
He had petty feuds with companies like Adobe after public acceptance swayed toward Flash instead of Quicktime and tried to patent simple existing standards like opening a blue URL link with a browser by touching it.

Steve Jobs really is not someone to revere. His ethics were deeply troubling and none of you should want your children to grow up as narcissistic and evil as he was.

I don't believe in God but I do believe in karma.

-Gates Out-
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)