The Social Network (2010)

Directed by David Fincher

Screenplay by Aaron Sorkin

Spoilers ahead!

The Social Network tells a story. Whether or not that story is completely factually correct, one cannot deny it is a damn good story. Elevated by a pacey script by Aaron Sorkin and stunning performances by Jesse Eisenberg and Andrew Garfield, this film is about more than just the creation of Facebook.

The movie opens with one of the most memorable opening scenes of recent years. An incredible nine pages of dialogue are worked through in just under five minutes. Mark Zuckerbeg (Jesse Eisenberg) is seated in a bar with his girlfriend Erica Albright (Rooney Mara) discussing how best to distinguish himself from the crowd in college. Seeing as this will become the main theme of the film, the structure of the opening scene is genius. The opening scene in itself becomes a condensed version of the entire film. Within five minutes, we see Erica attempt to empathise with Mark, but she gradually tires of him as it becomes increasingly evident he is not interested in what she is saying. This is effectively the plot of the film – Mark losing those around him as he becomes more and more self-obsessed.

Perhaps the biggest strength of this film is the quick pace of Sorkin’s screenplay. Zuckerberg says himself in the film’s third act that Facebook is growing faster than any of the founders could ever have imagined and the films pacing plays up to this. The script is a whopping 168 pages long – the same length as Pulp Fiction, a film forty minutes longer than this one. If anything conveys the pace of this film, surely that’s it! The opening hour is frantic – the audience don’t have a moment to breathe as we are introduced to character after character and plotline after plotline – but not a single scene is wasted. Every scene furthers the plot and the characters brilliantly, another huge strength of this film. The screenplay keeps the film moving at this pace with wit and levity – rightfully winning Sorkin his first Academy Award.

The acting performances are what keep this film afloat, however. The screenplay is exceptional, but it demands good acting and boy is that what we get. Eisenberg is obviously outstanding in a career-defining role. It may seem like he is just playing the bog-standard character he plays in every single film, but this performance is so much more than that. He perfectly conveys the detached – almost cynical - emotional nature of his character, while still retaining some tiny bit of likability. I’m as big a fan of The King’s Speech and Colin Firth as anyone, but how Eisenberg did not grab an Oscar for this film is beyond me.

Andrew Garfield’s performance as Zuckerberg’s only true friend, Eduardo Saverin, is admittedly less flashy than Eisenberg, but it deserves commendation, particularly the raw emotion shown in his final scene. Garfield may be better known to audiences for his all too brief time as Spider-Man, but this performance is one of the best in a supporting role I have ever seen. As for Justin Timberlake? Yeah, I didn’t hate him in this as much as I thought I would. He actually does a pretty good job as Sean Parker, admittedly in the film’s least challenging role. Still, he gets his character’s nastiness and flaws across to the audience well.

This film is perfectly crafted. David Fincher – a man who made his name with visually striking films such as Se7en and Fight Club – does a great job with a more understated visual film and the score is simply stunning. Everything from the writing, to the acting, to the directing and to the music, is exceptional and this film is undeniably one of the best made this century.

One final note: as a die-hard Beatles fan, I couldn’t help but adore that final scene. The framing of Mark’s unhappiness against the title cards depicting his wealth, against the pending friend request to Erica and against the unashamedly life-affirming Baby, You’re A Rich Man by Lennon and McCartney is one of the best closing scenes I have seen in any film.

The Social Network is one of the best films I have watched all year long and is well worth any amount of watches.