'The Social Network' - Movie Review

When word first got out that there was going to be a Facebook movie the general reaction was one of dismay or just cynical scoffing. Then the talent involved was announced and people started to pay attention. Visually gifted director David Fincher was teaming up with quick witted writer Aaron Sorkin to tell the story of "The Social Network." This pairing of giants got people to start to pay attention, and the resulting film is deserving of that attention. Now nominated for the Best Picture Oscar, it stands out as a film that perfectly captures the modern age, digital warts and all.

Mark Zuckerberg (played by Jesse Eisenberg) is a Harvard student and a brilliant computer programmer. However he's also a rather lousy social net-worker, owing mostly to his epic lack of tact in dealing with other people. One night after his girlfriend breaks up with him he hacks into the web pages of the various houses and clubs on campus, yanks the images of the girls and puts them on a web-page where two can be compared at a time and visitors can vote on who's hotter. Zuckerberg creates the site on a whim in a moment of drunken anger, but the site generates enough traffic to crash the school's servers within a few hours, and this is at four o'clock in the morning. He receives an academic slap on the wrist but is also noticed by twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (both played by Armie Hammer,) two members of one of the elite clubs on campus. They pitch Zuckerberg an idea for a site called "Harvard Connection" which would give students the chance to network together online but would have an exclusivity that would give it a prestige over sites like Myspace. Users would have to have a Harvard e-mail address. Zuckerberg agrees to set up the site, but rather than working on it he takes the idea to a grander scale with the help and financial backing of his best friend Eduardo Saverin (Played by Andrew Garfield.) The popularity of "The Facebook" quickly starts to spread across campuses all over the US until Napster creator Sean Parker (played by Justin Timberlake) gets wind of it. Parker is able to quickly insert himself into the company and seems to have Zuckerberg's full attention, much to the chagrin of Saverin. All of this and the events that follow are told through testimony given in two law suits being filed against Zuckerberg, one by Saverin and one by the Winklevosses.

As would be expected Aaron Sorkin (writer of "A Few Good Men" and the creator of TV's "The West Wing") delivered a script that is dialogue heavy, however that dialogue crackles with fast paced wit. Sorkin's writing style is very specific, his characters are always quick witted and well spoken. It's unrealistic certainly, but extremely entertaining as well as feeling like a good fit for a story dealing largely with Harvard students and other highly educated people. Fincher brings a visual artistry to the film that is in some ways a contrast to the writing. Whereas the writing is quick and energetic the film visually is very dark, Fincher reveling in any chance to set a scene at night or in a dimly lit room or bar. The contrast of the quick popping dialogue and the rather noir-ish visuals is one that works in the film's favor.

Of course the witty rapport would have been wasted had the actors in "The Social Network" not been able to deliver, thankfully though they all do. Eisenberg gives a rather deadpan yet surprisingly layered performance as Zuckerberg. Zuckerberg wants desperately to be part of the elite social circle at Harvard but is never given the chance. He then essentially creates the online equivalent to the life he didn't get to have. Zuckerberg comes across as both blatantly honest and difficult to read, which is a very tricky combination to nail down, but Eisenberg does it. Garfield also does great work as Saverin, probably the only person who even comes close to knowing or caring about Zuckerberg. Garfield plays up the pain of the betrayal his character feels, especially in the deposition scenes. Timberlake as Parker is the actor clearly having the most fun. The casting is fitting as Parker is essentially a half washed up rock star of Silicon Valley. He's both full of himself yet desperate to cling to the next thing coming and he does it all with a charm that is often disarming. Hammer as the Winklevoss twins has some of the most memorable scenes, often playing against himself. The twins are clearly very similar but there are nice little difference in their temperament and the scenes with them are always a joy.

In an interesting way, the manner in which "The Social Network" is structured makes the telling of the story somewhat similar to the experience of Facebook itself. Since the story is being told through depositions being given by people who are suing Zuckerberg it makes the narrative somewhat unreliable. Those who are effectively telling the story (though it's not as blatant as them literally narrating it) have an incentive to paint the Facebook inventor in a harsh light. Zuckerberg (or his lawyer) will interrupt the testimony, and therefore the story, from time to time claiming something is untrue or distorted, but the audience isn't really given any more reason to trust him than anybody else. In a way it's like finding out about a news story from people's Facebook posts. You get the general gist of it and you get an opinionated slant but the actual facts may not be presented in full.

There are a few things that hold "The Social Network" back somewhat. Like many of Fincher's work the film is technically flawless yet at times distantly cold. While the story and the characters are certainly interesting Fincher never really lets the audience get close enough to invest in them emotionally. Fittingly enough the film plays in the way that a court document being read would, the facts are very interesting but they're not something to get emotionally wrapped up in. That's not the say the film needed melodrama but Fincher seems to be holding the audience at a distance. The film also looses a certain amount of steam towards the end. When it's following the initial creation and launch of Facebook it's extremely fascinating and engaging. However once the company exists the film falls into the standard format of most "guy gets rich and forgets who his friends are" type stories. That's not to say that the film suddenly becomes boring but it seems to just slightly loose it's edge towards the end.

Even with those issues in mind "The Social Network" is still an extremely well made and quite enjoyable piece of work. The teaming of Sorkin's words and Fincher's visual eye is truly a match made in heaven and if audiences are very fortunate the two will work together again in the future. Facebook has become in many ways the defining event of a generation, and this film is able to capture not only the inception but the very essence of the site. There's little wonder why this movie keeps popping up on various critics' Top 10 of 2010 movie lists.

Final Score: 4 out of 5