By Joshua Knopp/entertainment editor
The true story is presented in retrospect. As Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) is sued in two simultaneous cases by Eduardo Saverin (Andrew Garfield) and Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (twins played by Armie Hammer), the lawyer’s questions lead the three to flash back to the events that contain the answers.
The three parties each had a function in the formation of Facebook — the Winklevoss twins supplied the basic premise, Saverin provided the cash to get it started, and Zuckerberg designed the actual website. But while most inventors of this structure work and laugh together, this trio is divided by lies, money and idea theft.
The Social Network is, above anything else, incredibly well-written. Writer Aaron Sorkin, best known for his play-turned-film A Few Good Men and long-running political drama The West Wing, makes his style shine with the fast-paced, witty dialogue that pervades the film. More notable than this is the hubris triangle formed by the three parties in question. It is a relationship that hasn’t been scripted quite so explicitly before. It looks like it would be difficult to portray in a regular timeline, let alone a broken one.
This script is executed brilliantly by the cast. Eisenberg, Garfield and Hammer are all fantastic and supported by an inspired performance from Justin Timberlake.
Zuckerberg is very much the main character and presents the cutthroat nature of the business world in all its moral ambiguity as well as the personal drive that can lead a person to such betrayals. The film has been compared to Citizen Kane in terms of structure because it portrays a man who reached the top of the world but then leapt off of it for personal reasons. These personal reasons (heartbreak, jealousy, loneliness, desire for approval) are the beating heart of the movie.
This film has one of the best scripts of the year and takes as its subject matter the drama behind a social revolution in whose mighty wake we are still trapped. Go see it.
