November 27, 2013 THE VILLADOM TIMES I & II • Page 21 Ashton Kutcher portrays Apple’s co-founder in ‘Jobs’ by Dennis Seuling “Jobs” (Universal), the story of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs (Ashton Kutcher), is a routine chronicling of the highs and lows Jobs experienced on his journey to shake up big business and the American public with new, exciting com- puter-based products. The film merely trots out one sig- nificant business event after another, many of which may already be familiar to viewers. Jobs’ private life is barely touched upon, even though there is a lot of dramatic mate- rial to be mined. The movie does not address Jobs’ refusal to acknowl- edge paternity of his daughter and years of estrangement from her, his disloyalty to associates who helped him reach his goals, and his calculated payback to those who crossed him. The movie even omits the entrepreneur’s cancer diag- nosis and his stubborn refusal to seek traditional medical treatment. The film never gets to that point, preferring instead to leave viewers with his reinstatement, after years of corporate infighting, as CEO of Apple. Kutcher has little to work with other than Jobs’ hunched walk, beard, and explosive nature. He may be fine in light comedy, roles but is in way over his head as Jobs. His per- formance often seems perfunctory. While stronger actors work with expression, dramatic pauses, and reflection in their portrayals, Kutcher is content with an adequate, if not Ashton Kutcher as Steve Jobs. particularly impressive, impersonation and a few cursory attempts at introspection. Josh Gad (Broadway’s “The Book of Mormon”) por- trays Jobs’ early partner, Steve Wozniak, as a self-described tech. Gad humanizes Wozniak while Kutcher never gets to the heart of Jobs. To Jobs, human contact has become an inconvenience. “Jobs” is a hasty overview of the life and achievements of Steve Jobs, offering little insight into the forces that drove Jobs to become one of the most successful entrepre- neurs of the last 100 years. Bonuses on the Blu-ray/DVD combo pack include deleted scenes, director commentary, and featurettes on Kutcher as Jobs, the film’s score, and a look at the impact of Jobs’ innovations on modern life. “Grabbers” (IFC Films) is a comic thriller. On Erin Island, a fishing village off the coast of Ireland, charm- ing local cop Ciaran O’Shea (Richard Coyle), who enjoys drinking, is tasked with showing straitlaced police offi- cer Lisa Nolan (Ruth Bradley) her new beat. There is not much to police, since most of the community’s troubles are caused by O’Shea, but strange doings are afoot. The crew of a fishing boat disappears, dead whales wash up on the shore, and a local lobsterman catches a mysterious tentacled creature. It turns out the alien monsters terroriz- ing the town are allergic to human blood with high alcohol (continued on page Crossword page)