A masterfully understated modern saga.

Rating: 9/10 (15 November 2010)

Firstly, I thoroughly enjoyed The Social Network. The acting is fantastic, the direction and score pleasantly understated, and the whole package wrapped up nicely as a biopic-cum-rise and fall saga. Special mention must go to Jesse Eisenberg for an absorbing performance that manages to make the most of Aaron Sorkin's lightning-fast script. The wicked humour of the early stages of the film mellows towards the end as we start to empathise with almost all of the characters.
So what's wrong with it? I found the film to be almost a little too quirky, a little twee. The characters of Zuckerberg, Parker and the Winklevi seem heightened, a little too exaggerated to be fully believable. Part of this is in the dialogue which is clever, but a little too perfect for characters who are all struggling to make themselves understood. Part of it is in the occasional flashes of artsy music and camera-work, as if Fincher is trying to distance the film from the Hollywood pantheon. Maybe it is because by the end of the film, I still wasn't really sure what the message was, or what the characters had learned.
But maybe that's the point. We may never understand what goes on inside Zuckerberg's head, but we are absorbed by watching how it plays out. The intelligence that sets him apart also keeps him apart, and his fierce individuality set up the emotional strain that follows. While it may not quite have rung true, The Social Network is a very good film, all the more interesting given that Facebook is still gaining followers and taking up more and more of our collective free time.
A final note: Justin Timberlake's decision to take up acting is the best career move since Joachim Phoenix decided to stop rapping. A very talented man.