The Social Network

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Justin Timberlake, Rooney Mara, Joseph Mazzello, Armie Hammer, Rashida Jones, Max Minghella
Directed by: David Fincher
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Drama
2010

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) and Eduardo Saverin (Andrew Garfield) found facebook at Harvard in 2003, which grows in ways they never imagined, and changes the world.

Review:

Tim: I'm jealous that Peter Travers from Rolling Stone called The Social Network "An American landmark." That is exactly how I feel about this movie. David Fincher's brilliant look at the founding of facebook is a modern day movie that has all the elements of the great stories of yesterday- power, wealth, betrayal, sex, and the inevitable loss of innocence. I remember hearing that they were going to make a movie about facebook. I thought it was an awful idea. Instead, it turned into one of the most memorable, powerful stories in recent memory. This is a film that should have won the Academy Award for Best Picture.

I was impressed with the depth to the characters here. Every one feels like a real person (which is hard to do, even with films based on the lives of real people). They are so so complex and interesting. At the heart is Mark Zuckerberg. Regardless of your thoughts of him in real life, Zuckerberg is a terrific cinematic character. He is clearly brilliant, yet his intelligence is also his weakness. He's arrogant, egotistical, and a jerk. And yet, there's something very fragile and human about him, too. You may not like him, but you find yourself drawn to him regardless. The character is fantastic.

Of course, so much of this comes from Jesse Eisenberg. I've liked Eisenberg for a while now, but he rocketed up my ladder of esteem with this performance. It is such a brave, strong, restrained performance. He blew me away. I did not expect him to deliver such a powerful, moving portrayal of Zuckerberg. I was fascinated by his acting here. From his looks to his snide remarks, to his belief that he is smarter than everyone around him, Eisenberg nails all these moments beautifully. He very much deserved his nomination for Best Actor at the Academy Awards.

The rest of the cast is impressive, too. Andrew Garfield gives a star-making turn as Eduardo. Garfield is such a talented actor, and I loved him in this movie. He was perfect for the part. I even have to say I very much liked Justin Timberlake as Sean Parker. I'm still not completely sold on Timberlake as an actor yet, but I have to admit- I can't deny that he was very, very good in this film. Armie Hammer was well cast as both Winklevoss twins. Rooney Mara was only in the film for a short while, but is so good that her presence is felt throughout it. I liked Rashida Jones, here as well. She has a small role, but it's very important. The cast was nothing short of amazing.

While The Social Network missed out on the big awards, it did pick up three Academy Awards. The editing is deserving, and Aaron Sorkin absolutely deserved the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. His screenplay was absolutely brilliant- there are so many incredible, wonderful lines in this film. It must have been a pleasure for the actors to speak them. The words just jump off the screen. While I'm glad this won those two, I might be even more excited that it won Best Original Score. Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross put together a genius score that set the tone for the whole movie. It is quiet, restrained, and lonely- and perfectly supports the film. The music here was incredible.

I very, very much liked this movie. It is an important, contemporary, beautiful story that surprised me with its layers of complexity and depth. The Social Network is a great movie. David Fincher has to be one of my favorite directors of all time. He's had so many great films, and this is yet another addition to his impressive resume. We desperately, desperately need more movies like this.



Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 8



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Zombieland, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo