The Social Network (****)
Directed by: David Fincher
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Justin Timberlake, Rooney
Mara, Armie Hammer, Max Minghella, Rashida Jones, Joseph Mazzello
Seen: November 8th, December 21st 2010
**** Out of ****
The Social Network starts in a dark and smoky bar, Mark Zuckerberg (Eisenberg)
in conversation with his girlfriend Erica Albright (Mara), a conversation that
quickly turns to Erica lambasting a curiously socially inept-seeming Mark before
she eventually breaks up with him. In the background the White Stripes’ gritty song
Ball and Biscuit is playing, adding just a little more edge to what is already
one of the best dialogue driven scenes I’ve ever seen. This first few minutes
alone grabbed my attention and pushed me into the back of my chair welcoming me
to the phenomenon that is The Social Network, not letting me go until the final
shot faded to black and the credits rolled.
Mark Zuckerberg, the main founder of Facebook, apparently didn’t get
there completely on his own or without a struggle, and while the movie does
take certain liberties around factuality, the main idea remains intact. The
screenplay was written by Aaron Sorkin, based on the book The Accidental
Billionaires by Ben Mezrich, for which Eduardo Saverin, Zuckerberg’s original
financier and business partner, played brilliantly by Andrew Garfield in the
movie, was the main consultant. Sorkin has however been upfront about the fact
that he wrote quite a few lacy fabrications into the story.
The earlier mentioned break-up leads to Zuckerberg running to his
Harvard dorm-room where he drunkenly and aggressively starts hacking fraternity
pages to obtain photos of all the girls on campus, which he then programs into
facemash.com, a website where you can vote on the hotness of girls. This brings
down the Harvard network, and puts the brilliant Zuckerberg in the open where
he is approached by the Winklevoss twins (both played by Armie Hammer,
supplying probably one of the most entertaining lines in the movie about there
being two of him) to assist them in programming their website, Harvard
Connection. Zuckerberg continues more on his own while keeping the Winklevosses
(or as Zuckerberg says, Winklevi) on a line, not communicating with them all
that much. When Mark eventually launches Facebook (thefacebook then), the
Winklevoss brothers believe he stole their idea and, short of suing him, try
every avenue available to them, not phasing Mark one bit, he even ignores their
cease and assist warning as completely insignificant.
As Facebook grows, first at Harvard and then at more and more colleges
throughout the USA and eventually Europe, Mark bulldozes through everything and
everyone with his asocial personality and singular aim to improve Facebook,
leaving behind those whom he doesn’t deem usefull anymore, and picking up new
allies along the way. This includes Sean Parker (Timberlake), the founder of music
“piracy” software/website Napster, who has ideas to take Facebook to a next
level, mezmerising Zuckerberg. From an early stage, the movie cuts to different
depositions and mediation sessions where Mark sits on the opposite side of the
table from Eduardo and the Winklevoss twins, with everyone trying to get to the
truth of what actually happened over the years of growth of the website.
The soundtrack by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross from the Nine Inch
Nails is fantastic, and coupled with the always witty and hard-driving
dialogue, I’ve never experienced a straight drama quite like this, keeping me
completely engrossed for a full two hours that seemed to be nothing more than
an hour. Eisenberg is stunning as the emotionally stunted genius programmer;
Timberlake definitely surprises as the outgoing Sean Parker, hinting at
undertones of sleaziness that many better acators have failed to portray so
subtly; and every other cast member follows suite, delivering pitch perfect performances
(no doubt wrung out of them by genius director David Fincher – the opening
scene with Mark and Erica took 99 takes before Fincher was happy, and the proof
is in the pudding). Even small things like facial expressions are perfectly
used, such as Andrew Garfield’s realisations (on behalf of Eduardo Saverin) of
what is happening to him and even lawyer intern Marylin Delpy’s (Jones) face
momentarily lighting up when asked for dinner by Zuckerberg before remembering he
is her client. I have to mention one sequence, visually starkly in contrast with
the rest of the movie, where the Winklevoss twins are shown competing in a boat
race for Harvard against the Dutch Hollandia Rowing Club, which, incredibly
presented, is a turning point for the Winklevoss mentality in choosing to bring
the weight of the law against Zuckerberg.
The Social Network is a massively intense and engrossing drama which,
while grand in scope, still manages to leave the viewer with a little echo of
sorrow when looking at Mark Zuckerberg just before the end credits start
rolling, alone in a board room, turning to Facebook in an attempt to find some
human connection…
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