"Zero Days"

"Zero Days" Movie Review

"Zero Days"

Posted on July 8, 2016 on CWAtlanta.cbslocal.com

Wayback Machine Archive Post

“Zero Days” (2016)

Oscar-winning writer/director Alex Gibney has brought us such documentaries as “The Armstrong Lie” (2013) and “Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief” (2015). With Gibney’s films, you know you are going to get some hard-hitting investigating reporting, often looking at the scary parts of our world with an investigative mind mixed with a bit of humor. Gibney isn’t afraid to go after institutions that have a tendency to fight back, and in “Zero Days” delves into the cloak-and-dagger world of international internet hacking.

In 2010 the anti-malware software company, Symantec Corporation (long time developers of the antivirus software Norton) discovered a potentially lethal and potent computer virus. It was the most sophisticated virus ever created, with levels and levels of code containing more mysteries than answers. It didn’t need to be spread by the Internet, making it extremely hard to stop and unlike most malware; it didn’t need external commands to carry out its mission. The anti-malware community studied the virus they eventually named “Stuxnet.” It was months of months of research before they finally started to peel back the very complex layers and slowly find out just what the target was for this virus that was sweeping the world, infecting computers at an alarming rate. Whoever built “Stuxnet” had deep pockets and apparently the virus was created to target Iran’s atomic program. Who would want to bring down Iran’s nuclear plants and how far are they willing to go to do so?

When you watch this film, you will be at times frustrated, angry and downright scared. Gibney presents the information about “Stuxnet” in tidbits, bringing the mystery to a full and complete tension filled reveal that just might have your jaw on the floor. The film is frustrating because not every individual that Gibney talks to is forthcoming in their testimony, sometimes for maddening and silly reasons. As with most of his films, Gibney asks his questions off camera making the camera itself a part of the cast of the movie. There are few times that you can hear how frustrated Gibney is when his questions are avoided. In typical Alex Gibney fashion, these issues will be eventually answered in depth. He crafts this film as if we are on a spy mission with him, delving into topics we could get in trouble investigating. A few times during the movie I worried about Gibney, wondering if he was pushing this subject too far. Would he end up like some of the people in the film, mysteriously dying in car bombs or disappearing into the mist, like a John Le Carre novel?

The film doesn’t only deal with trying to figure out who created/released “Stuxnet” but, also looks at a world going down the slippery slope of attacking another country using malware. The film points out that while not perfect, there have been significant advances in creating treaties for nuclear proliferation, chemical weapons, and even the laying of mines. There need to be guidelines/treaties about attacking another country via software set so that countries like Russia, North Korea, and yes, even the U.S. is going to release a virus that might just shut down the world’s infrastructure.

I enjoyed this film, and the first two-thirds of it move at a fast clip that has a number of revelations that you don’t see coming. Unfortunately, once the big reveal is done, and we have all the information about “Stuxnet,’ the film starts to slow down. The film begins to explore the world of modern warfare that includes malware, bogging down the movie with a lot of talking heads. I think Gibney would have been better served to make a “where do we go from here?” separate movie. There is also a reveal I didn’t like about a person, whose testimony is the key to the information that we gather throughout the film. That reveal exploits the trust we have in that person and the filmmaker.

While not one of Alex Gibney’s best, “Zero Days” is an important film that will be the subject of much discussion by the media and its audience. Just be warned, after seeing this movie, you may invest in new antivirus software because you are going to get a little paranoid at the end.    My Rating: Full Price

My movie rating system from Best to Worst:  1). I Would Pay to See it Again  2). Full Price  3). Bargain Matinee  4). Cable  5). You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again

“Zero Days” is playing in the Atlanta area exclusively at Landmark Midtown Art Cinema

“Zero Days” Website

"Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine"

My review of the documentary "Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine"

"Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine"

Posted on Mar. 25, 2015 on CWAtlanta.cbslocal.com

Wayback Machine Archive Post

Photo courtesy of CNN Films

“Steve Jobs: Man in the Machine” (2015)

Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker Alex Gibney brought his latest film, “Steve Jobs: Man in the Machine,” to the SXSW Film Festival for it’s World Premiere. Playing to a packed house at the lovely Paramount Theatre in Austin, TX, the film explores the legend of Apple founder and leader, Steve Jobs.

The film opens with the reaction on the streets to the death of Jobs at the age of 56. Gibney reflects on the fact that people around the world reacted to his death like a close, personal friend had died. It was an outpouring of grief and affection that is usually reserved for a film or pop star. People descended on Apple stores around the world, leaving tributes, candles, and flowers as they openly wept. Gibney doesn’t understand why the loss of a computer innovator is such a blow to so many people. He’s attached to his iPhone just as the next person is, but why did this man and his products make such a connection to some many people? He asks, “What accounted for the grief of millions of people who didn’t know him?” Gibney’s mission with this film is to figure out why Jobs was seen not only as a hero and an innovator, but as someone who was a messiah to the information age. The film looks at the man who asked not only his design team but also the people that used his products to “Think Different.”

The film briefly touches on Jobs childhood / teen years and his early days working for the arcade game maker Atari. The film doesn’t go into too much depth until Jobs starts up Apple in the garage of a small home with a handful of like-minded programmers. Jobs idea was to create a computer that was personable and could adapt to your needs and interests. He wanted to build the exact opposite of the computers that IBM was putting out for the business world, a computer for the rest of us.

Through archival interviews and videos of Jobs, Gibney lets Steve do most of the talking in the film, making him almost a personal tour guide to the story of his life. Jobs had the uncanny ability to spot talent and the ability to inspire people that worked for him to achieve the impossible. Gibney interviews former employees from both the early days of Apple and the latter years, when the company that Jobs started had become a powerhouse in not only the computer world but in the business world as well. Gibney shows Jobs as a driven man who expected his employees to create perfect products but demanded that the job take over their lives, so much so that their personal lives suffered to a great extent. Apple did not allow access to current employees, so we only see important executives, such as CEO Tim Cook or top designer Jony Ive, in footage from press conferences and Apple events. The film does extensively interview Jobs first wife and several of the early employees of Apple, giving some insight on what drove Jobs in the startup days.

This film will probably be a shock to the many fans of Jobs and Apple. Jobs was a man who was driven to succeed and didn’t mind screwing other people to achieve his goals. Gibney tells the story of Jobs being hired by Atari to create a board for one of the games, with the goal to make the board use fewer computer chips and be more streamlined. Jobs goes to his old friend, Steve Wozniak to design the board (something that Woz was much better at than Steve). When Woz creates a board that amazes the engineers of Atari, they give Jobs a bonus of $5,000. He tells Wozniak that Atari gave them $1,400 and gives Woz his cut of $700. Only later did Wozniak find out that Steve kept most of the bonus to himself. Gibney gives us many examples of how Jobs could be cold and calculating, a man who seemed to be obsessed with accumulating money. When Jobs came back to Apple (after being let go for a while), he all but eliminated Apple’s endowment programs and most of its charity work, adding more money to the bottom line. The film sheds light on some accounting scandals the Jobs was involved with, painting in a very negative light. The film also takes a critical look at the factories in China that Apple uses to build their products. These factories are full of low-paying jobs that require long hours and put so much pressure on the workers that they are committing suicide at an alarming rate.

With his film, “Steve Jobs: Man in the Machine,” Alex Gibney shows us that Jobs was a man who helped connect the whole world through his products, but he couldn’t connect to people in his own personal world. It is truly ironic that Jobs created products like the iPhone, something that was meant to connect us to other people, but instead seems to isolate us as we stare at our iPhones at the bus stop or at the dinner table. The film is a fascinating, unflinching look at an extremely complicated and ego driven man. I just wonder that after seeing this film, will the fans of Apple and Jobs hold him in such high, almost god-like esteem and will they look at his products with the same reverence? Or will they just go back to staring at their iPhone screens?    My Rating: Full Price 

My movie rating system from Best to Worst:  1). I Would Pay to See it Again  2). Full Price  3). Bargain Matinee  4). Cable  5). You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again

“Steve Jobs: Man in the Machine” will be released in the fall by Magnolia Pictures.

"The Armstrong Lie" Movie Review

My review of the documentary "The Armstong Lie"

"The Armstrong Lie"

Published on Dec. 13, 2013 on CWAtlanta.cbslocal.com

Wayback Machine Archive Post

Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

"The Armstrong Lie"   (2013)

Lance Armstrong retired after winning his 7th Tour de France, the world’s most grueling sporting event. Riding the tour is a test of both the physical and the mental side of man’s ability to overcome pain to complete a sporting event. Armstrong seemed to be a man that could not be broken and was determined to leave everyone behind, choking on his dust. While there had always been allegations following Armstrong around that he used Performance Enhancing Drugs (PED’s), he had never tested positive and vigorously denied ever using them.

In 2009, Armstrong decided to mount a comeback, to prove he was the best and that he was clean. Filmmaker Alex Gibney was given unprecedented access to film this comeback that ultimately ended with Armstrong not winning his 8th Tour but coming in third.

In this fascinating documentary about the rise and fall of Lance Armstrong, we see that the comeback was Armstrong’s biggest mistake. By coming back, he reopened many doors that had been left closed, and many of his former teammates, who had been silent up to then, decided to take down Armstrong. What Gibney does a great job establishing is the background of Armstrong. We see how he was raised by a single mom, his love of endurance sports such as the triathlons and his first introduction to riding the one of the world’s most popular sporting events.

What makes this film unique is that for the first time, Armstrong is answering questions that he has always denied or has spun around to his own defense. He is confronted by Gibney, who knows Armstrong well and unlike Oprah, able to get him to answer the tough questions. Is as if Gibney has finally broken down the wall that Armstrong had carefully put up between himself and the press.

This film is intriguing because it was meant to be just about Armstrong’s comeback bid, but as the firestorm grew every day around his possible use of PED’s, Gibney decided to make a totally different film. Gibney interviews a host of riders, a great many that were on Armstrong’s winning Tour de France teams, making a case against Armstrong, voice by voice. The film goes beyond that comeback Tour and delves deeply into Armstrong’s races, making us feel as if we were there along for the ride. The filmmaker does a great job of giving us a background to the sport and why the Tour de France is so important to Europeans. We are there when Armstrong is training, as well as the candid moments during the 2009 race itself, showing Armstrong with his family, all the while medical teams continually test his blood for PED’s.

Gibney paints a picture of a man so driven that he wouldn’t think twice to try to destroy anyone that tried to bring him down. A man that overcame cancer and made an incredible amount of money in a sport that few Americans ever participate in, much less watch.  He was a man sure of himself that he says in the film “I certainly thought I would never get caught.” Ultimately, it was Armstrong himself that brought down his empire, and Gibney brings this to the screen for us to see.  My Rating: Bargain Matinee

My movie rating system from Best to Worst:  1). I Would Pay to See it Again  2). Full Price  3). Bargain Matinee  4). Cable  5). You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again

“The Armstrong Lie” is currently playing at UA Tara Cinemas 4