DVD RvReview: The Social Network
Did Ross McG ‘like’ the movie about Facebook? Are we the 72,345th website to use that crap joke? The answers to both those questions are ‘yes’. Find out how much he liked it after the jump.
The Social Network (five stars)
Sony, 12, £19.99
As far as cinematic mission statements go, there is nothing quite like the opening scene of The Social Network. The audience is immediately hurled into the middle of a sometimes incomprehensible conversation between Mark Zuckerberg and his girlfriend in a noisy Harvard bar. They argue faster than high-speed broadband. They talk in code as complicated as that used to write any website. He comes off as a jerk. She dumps him. It’s a sequence that says, ‘If you can’t keep up granddad, you might be better off watching The King’s Speech.’ And it isn’t even the best part of the film.
Between director David Fincher’s eye and writer Aaron Sorkin’s pen, their tale of Facebook’s birth is a humdinger, filled with an electrifying urgency perhaps not expected from the basic premise of a college undergrad spending several nights sitting hunched over his laptop. Combining coldness and impeccable comic timing, Jesse Eisenberg’s Zuckerberg is the perfect anti-hero for the ‘poke me’ generation, like Patrick Bateman without the murderous thirst for blood. It’s a career-defining performance, yet he is matched all the way by Andrew Garfield, effectively the heart of the movie as Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin.
In Rain Man terms, Garfield is the Cruise to Eisenberg’s Hoffman but the film wouldn’t work without his less showy portrayal. This is because beneath its beautifully unsettling score and machine gun dialogue, The Social Network is ultimately about the sad destruction of a friendship forged by two outsiders in creating a global phenomenon.
Extras: Commentaries, making of documentary, featurettes
This review first appeared in the Metro newspaper
Ross v Ross 
February 15, 2011 at 7:55 pm
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February 16, 2011 at 8:23 pm
Good movie but I thought it was much ado about quite nothing. While it is a beautifully written movie and the performances are quite good, at the end of the day, the movie isn’t really about anything meaningful at all. Watching a bunch of wealthy young assholes bicker around, what’s the freaking message?
February 17, 2011 at 3:14 am
“Like Patrick Bateman without the murderous thirst for blood”. What a terrific characterization of the Mark Zuckerberg character – a man who hides his insecurities and rage behind a wisecracking, emotionally distant façade. Great review!
February 17, 2011 at 10:22 am
totally disagree with you there Castor. it’s a film about a friendship between two guys – who despite being rich, are quite likeable and funny – falling apart. its basically Beaches for our generation.
February 17, 2011 at 6:22 pm
Yes, a story about two dudes friendship falling apart. Why aren’t they making a movie about my falling out of a friendship with the dozens of people I stopped being friends with. Who give a *beep?* 🙂 There is no real meaningful message in the movie.
February 17, 2011 at 6:29 pm
Castor, if youre not careful theyre gonna make a movie about you and I falling out.
well.. they’re not, but you get my drift.
basically, youre wrong. im right.
February 17, 2011 at 11:26 pm
You are that close to lose another follower on Twitter!!!!! 😉
February 17, 2011 at 11:58 pm
Castor… you complete me.
February 19, 2011 at 4:16 am
Congrats castor, you are the first person to unite me and McG…. against you. The Social Network is superb, and for me should win best pic Oscar, and only inception has the right to challenge it
February 19, 2011 at 4:43 pm
Near-perfect film, Eisenberg takes over Zuckerberg and makes hims something I wasn’t expecting at all. Good Review!
March 1, 2011 at 7:20 pm
Gota say that while i enjoyed this movie, it reminded me of something on the Hallmark channel at 1.30pm on a wet tuesday afternoon. Not to say it sucked, it was well made, good acting etc, but nothing out of the ordinary. I had read nothing but hype about this movie and was disappointed with the outcome. Timberlake was the highlight for me, please stay away from the crap songs and dodgy dance moves and pursue acting!!