10 Best Movies Of 2023 (So Far)

Nobody could be blamed for having little interest in watching a movie about the stratospheric rise and meteoric fall of the BlackBerry, but much like David Fincher's The Social Network, a potentially mundane story can be rendered riveting in the right hands.

Matt Johnson (Operation Avalanche) confirms himself a sure filmmaker to watch with this unexpectedly gripping docudrama centered around BlackBerry founder Mike Lazaridis (Jay Barcuhel) and his fiery, industrious business partner Jim Balsillie (Glenn Howerton).

While the casting of Baruchel and Howerton in the lead roles might lead you to expect a laugh-a-minute comedy, BlackBerry isn't quite that - even though it's certainly consistently hilarious regardless.

This is a witty, genuinely involving dramatisation of how the BlackBerry paved the way for modern smartphones, even if its fate was ultimately also sealed by the ubiquitous success of the iPhone.

Johnson's roving, docu-style camerawork is perfectly suited to the material, though the real reason to watch this film is Howerton's mesmerising edgy, anxious performance as Balsillie.

For a film just about everybody scoffed at when it was first announced, this is one of the year's most pleasant surprises for sure.