The Social Network

It’s not just watchable, it’s addictive, much like the topic it’s about.  Aaron Sorkin doesn’t need to be called a genius or one of the great American script-writers by me to feel good about himself, but, damn.  This is a film about a website, without a single action sequence of any relevance contained, and a shit-ton of geek-speak.  And the film is riveting.

Falling somewhere between “a tad” and “highly” fictionalized, Sorkin’s script (and David Fincher’s direction – spot on and claustrophobic) shows the nasty underbelly of the creation of Facebook with all its flaws.  Jesse Eisenberg’s rightly-lauded turn as “Mark Zuckerberg” (there’s quite a bit of creative license going on here; not at much as “Abe Lincoln, Vampire Hunter”, but enough) is the glue that holds the film together, with more one-liners and intelligent-rambling diatribes than can be isolated.  But the support cast is excellent, and Andrew Garfield’s “Don’t *fish* eat other *fish*” line is still the most quotable.  Heck, I’ll even give kudos to Justin Timberlake for playing a shady, entrepreneurial prick… maybe a little *too* well.

It’s a film about belonging, the need for acceptance and belonging and the scratch and claw way we humans go about to connect and yet remain disconnected.  It’s funny and sad and I’m sure I’ll Facebook about it at some point.  (I'd be remiss if I didn't get tingles when Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross took home an Oscar for Best Score.  Something surreal about that.)