‘BLACKBERRY’ IS TRUE TO LIFE

As the passing parade rushes by there is a danger of forgetting events of the recent past. To his credit, Canadian actor and filmmaker Matt Johnson has dramatized the rise and fall of a hand-held device that was a game-changer in the world of communications, and precious to many people I know: the BlackBerry. This is not just another cautionary tale of nerds made good and greed turned sour. It’s a particular tale of one geeky genius, Mike Laziridis (Jay Baruchel), his partner and pal Doug Fregin (played by director and co-writer Johnson), and a fiercely ambitious businessman Jim Balsillie (Glenn Howerton) who steps into their frat-boy world and launches them into the Big Time, beginning in 1996, bending the rules as he goes along.…