Revolutionary for our time

Rating: Null/10 (9 October 2010)

When I first heard that David Fincher was making a film about the networking site Facebook, I was definitely very skeptical. Well, there was no need to be. Fincher took Aaron Sorkin's brilliantly clever screenplay and turned it into a film that highlights the best and worst moments of out technology-based life.
The Social Network's first scene is brilliantly written and acted, and it sets the mood that both Fincher and Sorkin want to set for the rest of the film. The film is seen as the advancement of how Mark Zuckerberg got his world-famous website started. Now, I know that a lot of the film was exaggerated or fictional, but it does not matter. Sorkin and Fincher have brought us this really interesting character, who is brilliantly played by Jesse Eisenberg. Eisenberg is one of the best young actors in this time, and while he has mostly done comedy until now, his role demands much more attention to subtlety and character nuances to move along. Last year Eisenberg showed us that he could create some of the most likable characters in films like Zombieland and Adventureland, and this year he proves to us that he can actually create a very flawed and condescending, but still sympathetic character that we may or may not end up hating. This was credit to his real talent. Andrew Garfield was also pretty much equal in terms of performance, and he was a true star next to Eisenberg's character. The rest of the cast are all fine, including Justin Timberlake that has proved over the years that he can actually act pretty impressively.
On another note, the film might seem very different than Fincher's other films, which include pretty much all crime/thrillers and a fantasy (Benjamin Button), but I thought that he was able to leave his mark on the film. It certainly took itself seriously, which for a film like this is fortunate. The cinematography was also very impressive, but not showy, and very keen on the real focus of the film.
Ultimately, The Social Network is a very hard film to dislike. However, I also know that it is not the type of easy-going, fun but forgettable film that many (including me) expected months ago. It is more profound, more meaningful, but it might not hit a nerve with all viewers, including the young that will only want to see the 'Facebook Movie!'. I think The Social Network has a lot of similarity to last year's Up In The Air. Both represent a dilemma about people's communications in the modern world, and both can be seen as perfect examples of what life in the 21st' century was like. The Social Network is about the many connections that we have with others, and it makes you feel the longing and loneliness that might come with it. It is David Fincher's best to date.