The Social Network (2010) - Fincher's a-hole biopic leaves me cold (and more anti-Facebook than ever)

♥♥♥

 

Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerberg behind the huge tagline for David Fincher's The Social Network

 

The Social Network tells the story of how a group of assholes created the platform that made the rest of the world a bit more socially distanced, unsympathetic, frat-boy-like assholes like themselves: Facebook.

The film is written by Aaron Sorkin (Moneyball (2011)), based on (but apparently more accurately; written around the same time as) Ben Mezrich's (Reaper (1998)) The Accidental Billionaires (2009), and directed by Coloradoan master filmmaker David Fincher (Se7en (1995)). Like many of Fincher's films, The Social Network is deeply competently made and phallocentric. He brandishes a peanut-sized heart here with a film that doesn't really awaken any emotions, despite dislike for several of its characters. It races towards the finish line and in doing so feels pretty shallow, not unlike the invention it portrays.

The actors do fine jobs, although it is sad to watch Jesse Eisenberg (The Squid and the Whale (2005)) as alienated and humanly blunted as we get him here. Armie Hammer (J. Edgar (2011)) plays a pair of twins, which are the film's most sympathetic and funniest characters.

The Social Network is without a doubt among the most overrated films of the year.

 

Related reviews:

 

David Fincher: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011) - Fincher's Nordic noir is technically astute but overlong and redundant

Alien 3 (1992) or, The Monsters Go to Jail!

Watch a teaser trailer for the film here

Cost: 40 mil. $

Box office: 224.9 mil. $

= Huge hit

[The Social Network premiered September 24 (New York Film Festival) and runs 120 minutes. Sorkin began writing and researching based on a 14-page book proposal, while Mezrin was also writing his book. Filming took place in Massachusetts, Maryland, California and England, beginning in October 2009. The film opened #1 to a 22.4 mil. $ first weekend, staying atop for another week and spending a total of four weeks in the top 5 in North America, where it grossed 96.9 mil. $ (43.1 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were Japan with 16.9 mil. $ (7.5 %) and the UK with 16.8 mil. $ (7.5 %). Several people portrayed in the film, including Zuckerberg, found that it was historically inaccurate, especially in upping the drama of the lives of the main characters. The film got nominated for 8 Oscars: It won for Best Adapted Screenplay, Score and Editing. It lost Best Picture to The King's Speech, Actor (Eisenberg) to King's Speech (Colin Firth), Directing to King's Speech (Tom Hooper), Cinematography to Inception and Sound Mixing also to Inception. It was also nominated for 6 Golden Globes, winning 4, and for 6 BAFTAs, winning 3. It was on at least 78 critics' top 10 list of the year, topping 22 (including Roger Ebert's), reportedly the most for any film of the year. In its first week out on DVD and Blu-ray, it made an additional 13.4 mil. $ on that. The Social Network is certified fresh at 96 % with a 9 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of The Social Network?