"They just can't wrap their head around the idea that someone might build something because they like building things." - Mark Zuckenberg

Rating: 9/10 (21 January 2011)

The Social Network (2010) is fast, smart, sharp, and very modern because it tells the story based on the real facts going back to the origins of social network called Facebook that started few years ago, continues growing every moment, and forever has changed the way people communicate whether we like it or not. At the same time, the story is timeless, because it has been told many times already, that of the unpredictable and sky rocketing rise of a young genius, in this case computer prodigy, not very popular socially among his peers, who creates the comprehensive, easily accessible and the most popular and populated network of communication, which as of now includes 500 million participants all over the world and has made its creator the youngest billionaire ever. According to Kevin Spacey (yes, THE Kevin Spacey), the film producer and owner of the rights for the book by Ben Mezrich ("Bringing Down the House") "The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius and Betrayal," which is the basis for the script by Aaron Sorkin, it is "captivating story of betrayal, vast amounts of cash, and two friends who revolutionized the way humans connect to one another—only to have an enormous falling out and never speak again."
What made the film about birth and growing of the largest Internet social network truly remarkable are directing by David Fincher, the film's pace, and masterful editing. Seems that it moves with a speed of 100 megabytes per second, sweeps the viewers like a tornado, and throws them in a blink of eye back and forth from the recent past when there were no Facebook yet but it was inevitably meant to happen to the present switching between two lawsuits that Mark Zuckerberg had to face. One was filed by his former best friend and business partner Eduardo Saverin, and another - by the Winklevoss twins who claimed that Zuckerberg stole their original idea for his Facebook. I am not sure if it is the best movie of last year but certainly one of the most inventive, coolest, and interesting, the happy combination of intelligent and entertaining film with mass appeal. While watching, I could not help thinking of it as of Citizen Kane of modern day - even before I found out from reading about the film that I was not the only one who thought so.
The cast of the young actors all did terrific job. I've always liked Jesse Eisenberg since I saw him for the first time in the independent film Roger Dodger (2002) and I knew instantly that he would have a great future. In addition to Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield is very good as Eduardo Saverin, the best and the only friend of Mark Zuckerberg in Harvard, and co-founder of Facebook, who later was forced to leave the company and sued for his share in the Facebook stocks. According to the film, the big role in the fallout between Mark and Eduardo played Sean Parker - himself, a very remarkable personality. Parker was one of the creators of the enormously popular ten years ago but forbidden by court Napster - free Peer-to-Peer file sharing of music. Sean Parker, as played by Justin Timberlake, is very clever, charming, smooth, insightful, and totally unscrupulous, a Mephistophelian figure. I never thought of Timberlake much as of actor but I was pleasantly surprised by his performance. I also liked Armey Hammer who provided some comic relief in the double role of twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, golden boys who belong to the circle of "American aristocracy", the members of the Harvard row-crew that hired the fellow undergrad, Mark Zuckerberg to create a social network that would connect the Harvard students and let them communicate with one another on line. While working on the project, Zuckerberg took the idea to creating the global network, and the rest is history.
I would only suggest to a potential viewer not to take the film as an accurate documentary. It is not. From what I've read about real Mark Zuckerberg, his persona is somewhat different from the character that Jesse Eisenberg masterfully created in the Fincher/Sorkin's film. The main triggers in the film that started Mark working on the new site were frustration caused by the break up with his girlfriend and inability to join the most prestigious student clubs in Harvard. Real Mark has had the relationship with the same girlfriend since he was 19 - before he had become the creator of Facebook. He said in the interviews that he did not care about joining the clubs, and I believe him. The worlds he has created using his talent and his computer, starting as the teenager, were more exquisite than any prestigious club but jealousy and resentment just look so good in the movie that it would be much more difficult and challenging to make a compelling movie without them, just about someone who "might build something because they like building things". But then, we would be talking about completely different film.