You'd better pay attention

Rating: 9/10 (6 October 2010)

"The Social Network" is a film full of special moments, moments where we are treated to footage that will become classic, and many will be studying and discussing in the near future, learning how to find ways to pay tribute and possibly imitate the artistry of some very talented people, particularly, Mr. Fincher, a man who has already given us plenty to discuss and keeps delivering some spectacular work.
"The Social Network" comes very close to being perfect, almost flawless, and with the exception of two key scenes where, ironically, the stylized language and an arguable casting choice become blemishes on an otherwise beautiful and stirring film. Earlier on, "The Ghost Writer" combined all the elements and deliver a film that showed the maturity and growth of one of the masters of cinema, and to be fair to Fincher, this is a vast improvement over "Benjamin Button" a film that appeared a bit detached at times, and that might have been much too gorgeous for its own good, forgetting to add the right amount of emotion in a film that need to be, if anything an explosion of passion and the celebration of love and life. There were plenty of sparks, but the climax failed to come. This is not the case here.
"The Social Network" has moments of devastating emotional power. It moves us because it gives exactly an opportunity to see how success happens, how the various elements must be in place, and how talent, passion, and the desire to eliminate the competition takes you all the way to the top. The main character lashes out at one attorney and makes it clear to him and us that it all depends on focused and driven you must be "on what is really worth it", and this makes all the difference.
"The Social Network" shows the best and worst of humanity, an expose of what supposedly happened when one of the biggest Internet enterprises was designed and set up. It is admirable to see how the different players are given an opportunity to present their perspectives. It's scary and heartbreaking at times, and there are moments when we shudder at the realization of what we can be capable of doing, of how far we are willing to push the boundaries to get what we want.
"The Social Network" has several spectacular performances, a joy to behold and admire given the young age of most of its cast. Their work is impressive because they are relative newcomers, and yet they seem to understand their characters and the material that inspired the film. In particular, Garfield's acting is nothing short of wondrous and perfect, not surprising since he had an spectacular turn early in his career in "Boy A", a film that shook your soul, mostly because of the way Garfield realized his character. In "The Social Network" it is reactive performance that highlights the essence of the tragic relationship, as he finally understands what he is dealing with. It is a classic moment of such powerful repressed surprise and fury, we can only gasp.
"The Social Network" is not to be missed because much like "The Ghost Writer" earlier on, gives a rich and satisfying experience, not a bag of tricks where fx tend to overshadow brilliant ideas. Fincher explores once again the darkness of the soul, and this time his work is not as graphic and violent as he showed in "Seven" and "The Fight Club", true masterpieces on their own right, but it's the fresh and innocent look in the face of academia and what might be hiding there that shocks us because the film is not truly about business enterprises but about how one eventually has to make a choice between what is right and wrong, and I think, if only we paid attention...