Review of The Social Network (2010) by Jens S — 11 Mar 2013

The story of the creation of Facebook is less a high tech thriller and more a success story and a tale of friendship and betrayal. A film that predominantly consists of conversations has to be able to rely on flawless writing and acting, and this is a masterpiece in both regards.

The dialogs are fast, witty and realistic, even though sometimes a bit chatty, giving the film an extremely smooth and entertaining flow.

The actors are outstanding. Jesse Eisenberg plays Mark Zuckerberg as a nerd with few social skills, an arrogant asshole at times, but still likable enough as a protagonist to follow for two hours. Andrew Garfield, now new-Spiderman, shines as his co-founder, best and only friend. Newcomer Armie Hammer is extremely convincing (also thanks to imperceptible special effects) in his double role as Winklevoss twins, who feel that the social network idea was stolen from them. Last but not least, singer Justin Timberlake plays Napster-founder Sean Parker with so much arrogance, wit and charisma, one has to wonder why he ever bothered with a singing career first. All these performances as well as the ones in minor roles, delivering all those amusing, interesting and realistic dialog lines are a pleasure to behold.

David Fincher's smooth direction and the outstanding cinematography weave it all together into an easy-flowing film and an intelligent commentary on our generation and era, that is probably easier to appreciate if you actually know your way around Facebook. Nine Inch Nail's Trent Reznor delivers a subtle, but perfectly fitting soundtrack.