The Social Network (2010)

One of the top critical favorites of last year, The Social Network takes a subject that doesn't seem like it should be interesting (the founding of Facebook), and makes it interesting. Likewise the combination of director David Fincher and writer Aaron Sorkin doesn't seem the most natural thing in the world, though they both share a preference for dark lighting in there work, but again, this works.

Mark Zuckerberg is far from the most likable person in the world, through most of the film he's 'trying rather hard to be an a-hole'. Jesse Eiesnberg was the right choice to play Zukerberg, a darker Micheal Cera. As one would expect from a Sorkin screenplay, this movie is talkie, but intriguing. It is certainly a film that fits its zeitgeist, and though I'm a little surprised that Zukerberg just kind of let it be and made no real protest, I'm also not surprised, if this film leaves you any impression of Zukerberg, its that he doesn't care that much about 'rehabilitating his image.'

As this is one of those films for which it can be argued 'nothing much happens', its kind of hard to write about. It's about an anti-social revolutionary in social networking, a man who made friend a verb, but probably doesn't have many. Like another well regarded Sorkin film A Few Good Men, this movie is good, its well crafted, the story's fine, but the point seems a little bit vague. I know we are suppose to make our own judgments about Zukerberg, I know he's important and not uninteresting, but why this movie, why make a film about him? That's what a lot of the people in this film seem to be asking, why is Mark Zukerberg a revolutionary figure, the worlds youngest billionaire, and Time Magazines 2010 person of the year? Well I don't know, this film doesn't fully seem to know, and I doubt if Zukerberg himself does, and I guess that's the point. Zuckerbergs a bit of a contemporary Rorschach. Grade:A-