The Social Network...a lot more than a film about Facebook

When news broke Hollywood was making a movie about Facebook and Justin Timberlake was going to star in it, we laughed. We all laughed hard. But some research was done and it was found out Fight Club and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button director David Fincher was going to be behind the camera. And The West Wing scribe and extended dialogue king Aaron Sorkin was writing the script based on a book by Ben Mezrich the man behind the MIT blackjack team book Bringing Down the House which later sprung the Kevin Spacey film 21. Heads were scratched, faces tilted up with confused looks and one question was asked: “Huh?”

The Social Network is about Mark Zuckerberg, played by Zombieland’s Jesse Eisenberg, and his meteoric rise to become the world’s youngest billionaire. Yup that’s with a B. Facebook, you know the website you have opened in another tab right now as you read this, was created in a Harvard dorm room by a drunk genius who just got dumped by his girlfriend. If only that was a joke, but it really isn't.

But this film isn’t about Facebook. Sorkin’s words come to life to tell a story about friends, money, stolen ideas, not stolen ideas, enemies, lawsuits, and kids with minds that you can’t comprehend. It’s a character study about kids who wanted to make something cool, something exclusive and something to show others you don’t belong because these kids didn’t belong themselves. Its about priviledge, and rules and breaking rules. Its about kids from Harvard who do things better than you and now they owe you hundreds of hours of your life back because of your addiction to Mafia Wars and Farmville.

Eisenberg is quickly collecting a top notch resume. In a short time he's worked with Fincher and Sorkin, M. Night Shyamalan, Wes Craven and Indie Film king Noah Baumbach. Although the man that shines in this film is Reaper's Armie Hammer playing twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss. His portrayal of two identical looking brothers with different views of life is engaging and comedic at the same time. Andrew Garfield's face is starting to appear everywhere which is a good thing if the Spider-Man reboot will be any good (he's the next man to put on the tights and play Peter Parker). And keep an eye on Rooney Mara who plays Zuckerberg's ex and the reason he goes back to his dorm and changes the world. Mara's next big film is Fincher's American take on the hit book/film The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

Just like Benjamin Button wasn’t the prototypical Fincher film, The Social Network doesn’t come across as a Fincher film, but its still a better piece of work than anyone else can do. With a mishmashed time line, musical score by Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross and stellar performances (even by Timberlake), The Social Network screams out to Generation Y as their storyline. With YouTube making overnight successes and a downfall economy, The Social Network shows today’s youth how to make money in an industry their parents will never understand.