The Social Network: How do you turn a break-up into a billion dollars?
Posted: Monday, October 18, 2010
by Brombergs 2 Cents
As Neil Sedaka once sang, "Breaking up is hard to do."
For most people, breaking up means going to the bar and letting your friends buy you a drink. Perhaps you go to the shooting range to let out some steam, or go see a movie, or do something self-improving, or do something self-destructive, or date other people hoping for a "rebound", or get a pint of Haagen Dazs and watch a TV show marathon, or lock yourself into a room for days only to wallow in your own self-despair.
If you are Mark Zuckerberg, breaking up might mean to immediately log on the computer and blog about what a total hoe she was or how she was physically not up to your standards.
If you are Mark Zuckerberg, breaking up might mean immersing yourself into computer programming code, algorithms, formulas, and hyper-text markup language-as a form of catharsis. What happened to the days when computer nerds would go home and play World of Warcraft, Call of Duty, or, I don't know, shoot some aliens for hours, as their form of catharsis? Well I suppose that still happens, but in the case of Harvard student Zuckerberg, it was to the world of coding for him.
Now, it is quite apparent from many sources that the film is a work of fiction and much of the drama was written, well, for the purpose of drama! But, key-points of the plot are true, such as Zuckerberg being sued by other students who claimed Zuckerberg stole their idea and then went on to make gazillions.
In case you have been living in a hole for the past five or so years, this film is, in essence, a story of how the immensely popular social network Facebook got started. Whether or not you care about social networks like Facebook, this is an extremely well produced, compelling movie that, if anything, can be enjoyed for its artistic merit as a character study.
Why should you absolutely see this film?
1) This is a David Fincher film. I really do not need to say anything more than that. Fincher is known for such pictures as Fight Club, Zodiac, Panic Room, The Game, and Benjamin Button. This man knows how to put together a smart flick with high-caliber performances, psychologically tantalizing scripts, and dynamic cinematography. As a fan of film, I consider Fincher to be candy that is good for you. It is so good and done so well.
2) Social networking is profoundly popular. While it used to be a social tool for college students, now it is used for business marketing, for non-profit organizations, for local media stations-I mean, it is like the telephone, it is EVERYWHERE. I know people who tell me their grandparents are on it, they may not really get it, but they have a profile. I know parents are probably logging on to check on their children-to see who is writing on their wall, or what is their current ‘relationship status' and you know that this is very important: In a world where we are coming to dinner to eat together at the table less than we did decades ago, and personal communication is hindered as PDA technologies continue to grow-sites like Facebook are becoming that much more relevant in terms of how we learn about the meaningful people in our lives.
3) Very seldom can we say a film defines a generation. One might say the Dustin Hoffman classic ‘The Graduate' was such a movie. Critics could also argue that The Social Network is such a film. This is a Blackberry and I-Phone generation. Back in the old days, schoolgirls would be on the phone all the time talking to their girlfriends or lovers and now they are texting, or messaging, or facebooking. Indeed, Facebook has commonly become a verb.
I applaud Jesse Eisenberg for his portrayal of Mark Zuckerberg. Unfortunately for the real Zuckerberg, the script makes the film version look like a cold, pretentious ass-to put it mildly. Eisenberg talks fast, playing the part with dry wit, and a deeply sardonic tone.
So what is one thing I DIDN'T like about this film? Well, I can understand the computer programmer equals nerd stereotype because, simply, the disposition of the individual who enjoys spending 10+ hours staring at a computer screen writing code is probably not the same as the type of person who will go drinking with friends at the pub and take bong hits and perform kegstands. I think that is fair to say.
At one point in the film, there is a scene of a party put on by Alpha Epsilon Pi, a real-life organization that is famous for being a fraternity for Jews. The party theme is "Caribbean night" which is not a bad theme, as far as themes go. In the movie, this is viewed as a lame party and the AEPi members are portrayed as square, nerdy students. So you have a negative stereotype written in the screenplay for computer geeks, we get it. Frankly, computer programmers will be the first to admit their dorkiness and I bet many are even proud of it. This is likely not the same case for Jews. Just like it would be a bad thing to play up negative stereotypes for black people, Mexicans, or Asians, in a movie about social networks and not racial or religion centered jokes, it seemly highly unnecessary and strangely anti-Semitic. I mean, it came out of nowhere. The other strange thing is that, in the movie, Zuckerberg makes fun of AEPi, and in real life, Zuckerberg is a member of it. Hmm, am I the only one that seems this is odd? It is one thing if the negative stereotype is accepted (tongue-in-cheek) by the group it targets. But, I'm pretty sure Jews don't want to be seen as the group that does the lame parties on campus. It is irritating to me, in part, because at my college, AEPi put on some of the best parties during my time at the university. Again, this was a minor part of the film and I tried to just brush it off, but I do think it is at least worth noting.
It has been one of those un-written topics where, as a society, we seem to accept poking fun at some things-such as fat people and nerds. I'm not saying it is right, but rather that this is at least not related to a race, religion or belief system.
Ah, the goofy facets of our society.
Regardless, this film is worth seeing for its acting. Justin Timberlake is perfectly cast as Sean Parker, the man who co-founded Napster and helps Zuckerberg build his company. Timberlake plays the role as a paranoid, but glamorous, high on party life, lives to impress with ridiculous stories, ladies man (and probably pedophile). It's a beautiful performance, it really is.
Even from the very first scene, the dialogue is quick, smart and thoroughly entertaining. Whether you like it or not, social networks affect you in some way and here is a film that gives the genesis of that world a greater context to users (or observers) like you and me. Go see it! 3.5 out of 4 stars.
Story: 9
Acting: 9
Cinematography: 9
WOW!
I don't know why I'm the only commenter here, but be that as it may, thanks for a great movie review. I wasn't planning to see this movie-you changed my mind, now I'll drag the wife out and enjoy a good picture. I'll have to see if you have reviewed any other movies that I haven't seen. Good work
BobHey Bob,
Thank you so much for the wonderful comment! I have had other people go see films (or avoid films) based on my reviews, which is comforting to me as a writer and I hope when you see the movie, you enjoy it! I try to be honest and give a convincing argument, if anything, and that is what people seem to expect from me. Thanks again for stopping by!
I don't think I've ever seen you give three 9's - I can't wait to see this film! I want to find out more about the true story of Zuckerberg being sued. Is that case still happening now? What a great David and Goliath story if it's true that he did steal the idea. Excellent review, Bromberg!Yes, you'll learn more about this when you see the film. I'm not sure if I would call it David and Goliath, and you'll see why. Zuckerberg, at least how he is portrayed in the movie, is not a sympathetic character, nor are the others that much. It's like when you have a battle of wits, the one that is most clever wins--or at least presents the answer first and is clever. It would seem that Zuckerberg is both more clever and first. My understanding was that it was the others' idea to make it exclusive to Harvard students. While it might have started that way, it clearly is being using by more than college students today. Some people may have given Bill Gates ideas on how to design Windows, but he didn't steal the idea of Windows as an operating system, you know? I mean, other social networking sites were already up at the time like MySpace, so the idea itself was not new. It is strange, but even though the Zuckerberg character is seen as cold and miserable, I think he was the smartest person in the group, and he carries forth his argument in an intelligent manner. Hence, the others should get a little money in a settlement, and everyone should be happy. But, did that actually happen? Well, watch and find out! Thanks for the comment! Good hearing from you as always!
The way you review a movie is "Unbelievably Bromberg!"- You are superb at what you do- Always- EllaThank you so much Ella! I hope all my articles continue to be "Unbelievably Bromberg" and that this, haha, continues to be a positive thing to say! I know this may not be your genre of choice, but do you think you might see it? :-)
