Despite being aware of this movie and talking about it here since last July, due to work, family and life in general, I was late to the “The Social Network” party. However, after being bombarded with recommendations from all directions, I was able to take this one in recently. While it was a bit different than what I was anticipating in regards to atmosphere and pacing, I found it fairly amazing how a tale about a computer geek (based on a nonfiction book called “The Accidental Billionaires” by Ben Mezrich) was elevated to such a tremendous film.
The first thing I found jarring about this movie was the soundtrack. The foreboding music was very unique and off-putting, seemingly lending itself more to a horror flick than anything else. Also, the opening scene was an interesting choice by director David Fincher; it certainly gave you no time to slowly evaluate the Mark Zuckerberg character. The back-and-forth in the breakup scene gave a not-so-subtle insight into the fact that Zuckerberg was a social inept, narcissistic control freak. I also found it amusing that the actress who played his girlfriend is named Rooney Mara—that’s a name only an NFL aficionado could love.
Fincher’s tremendous pacing quickly launches you into the story of Facebook, which on the surface sounds like it wouldn’t be so enthralling. However, the tale is weaved with so much unexpected intensity that the movie flies past.
Fincher and screenplay writer Aaron Sorkin seek to prove that, like just about every big invention in the history of the world, Facebook was really about impressing a girl. While the facts about Zuckerberg wouldn’t necessarily seem to back that up (he’s apparently been dating the same girl since before Facebook), all involved in “The Social Network” have been adamant in pointing out that this is not a bio pic, but more of a story about a lawsuit and an interpretation of the events surrounding it. However, one could certainly make the case that Zuckerberg was trying to find himself and a place where he fits in the society of Harvard, that he was motivated by a plea for acceptance.
As is often the case in the movie format, many of the characters are very cardboard-like; in this case, the Winklevoss brothers come across as dumb-jock douches. I found Justin Timberlake to be an extreme stretch as Sean Parker, the “Napster dude” who is portrayed as a shady fraud who is using Zuckerberg for money, girls and fame.
Yet the movie is validated and legitimized by the tremendous performance by Jesse Eisenberg. From language to body language to awkwardness, you just get the sense that Eisenberg absolutely NAILS everything that is Zuckerberg.
While one could make the argument that the ending left so much unanswered and unresolved, that is also what could be construed as the beauty of this movie: since Facebook itself is constantly evolving and facing myriad obstacles, how could a compelling “ending” truly be written?
There is little question that many will view this film as a searing condemnation of Zuckerberg’s character and actions—and maybe rightfully so. Personally, I choose to remember that this is certainly just one perspective of the events surrounding one of the most important inventions of this generation. Instead, I’ll elect to evaluate “The Social Network” on its own merits as a movie. What I found in the watching was a project that could have gone way wrong if the lead character wasn’t cast correctly; Eisenberg himself took a potential afterschool-special vehicle and was the key ingredient in turning it into an intense, complex story that was deserving all the accolades it received.
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