The Social Network, an adaption of Ben Mezrich’s book, The Accidental Billionaires, is a film about the founding of Facebook. But trying to capture its history is an understatement of what this film has to offer.
Jesse Eisenberg (Adventureland, Zombieland) plays Mark Zuckerberg, a socially awkward, introverted computer genius that communicates best through zeroes and ones. Eisenberg does a convincing job of portraying Zuckerberg, from delivering those uncomfortably terse lines to garnering sympathy from the audience.
Early on in the film, Zuckerberg creates a web site called Facemash that allows students to rate college women based on their looks. This web site acts as Zuckerberg’s attempt of obtaining the social acceptance from his peers, but it actually backfires on him–women on campus hate him.
Zuckerberg’s website catches the attention of the Winklevoss twins—Tyler and Cameron, played by Armie Hammer, along with their friend Divya Narendra, played by Max Minghella. The three pitch an idea of a networking website, originally called the Harvard Connection, to try to entice Zuckerberg into clearing his bad reputation by helping them complete their project. Though Zuckerberg agrees to help, he has plans of his own.
Andrew Garfield plays Eduardo Saverin, Zuckerberg’s best friend and early financial supporter of Facebook. Justin Timberlake joins the cast as Sean Parker, co-founder of Napster and a money-hungry business advisor who winds up being a contributor to Facebook’s success.
David Fincher, best known for Fight Cluband Seven, directed the film and some critics are saying that The Social Networkis one of his best works.
The West Wingcreator Aaron Sorkin brings to the table a fast-paced and clever script that captures both tense relationship between the characters.
Together, the two create a film that weaves through different parts of Zuckerberg’s life, including legal setbacks. With the scenes spanning over different time frames, a voiceover not only allows the characters to tell their side of the story, but also connect their tales for a clear plot..
The Social Network is a story of turning rejection and hurdles into success, even if it means earning enemies along the way. Zuckerberg’s rejection ultimately led him to finding his purpose in society as the CEO of Facebook.
The Social Networkreleases in theaters on Oct. 1.
