The Social Network

It's hard to believe that it has only been six years since the creation of Facebook, the worldwide social network that I feel like I have been using for years. Though its also hard to believe that its taken this long for a film to made about the website's creation. Well I say its about time we see the "true" story of how Mark Zuckerberg created Facebook and viewers will most definitely be taken by surprise at the many unfortunate events that take place during Zukerberg's journey in, "The Social Network."

Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) is one of the smartest guys at Harvard (the smartest I've seen at least). It's clear from the beginning that this man is gifted in computer programing when he hacks into Harvard's database and retrieves pictures of the girls in the school to create a site called FaceMash where male students choose which of two girls is more attractive. This website ends up attracting so many hits in one night that it causes Harvard's Network to crash. Oh and by the way, he did all of this while he was drunk.

Now Mark is hated by the female population at Harvard and has been put on six months of academic probation. However the website that Mark created gains the attention of two male students named Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (Armie Hammer and Josh Pence though Hammer's face and voice are superimposed on Pence's character). These two come to Mark with the idea of creating a new website for Harvard students. Mark agrees to help the twins, but then goes to his friend Eduardo Saverin (Andrew Garfield) and the two talk about a seemingly similar idea that they call "The Facebook." From there we see the many trials, lawsuits, and betrayals that occur throughout the birth of this new social network.

"The Social Network" isn't an inside look at Facebook's history like some might think, but rather a moving personal look at the lives of very interesting characters. The film dives into the main characters' lives in such a deep and powerful way showing the viewer the different sides, layers, and personalities of people such as the founders Zuckerberg and Saverin.

Going into the film I was not expecting to see a drama full of character development and I wasn't expecting to learn so many things I never knew about Facebook's background and creators (though there is debate on how much of the film is made up and how much is true). For example, I never knew that Sean Parker (played by Justin Timberlake), the creator of Napster, had a very strong influence and impact on Zuckerberg during the early years of Facebook.

I was also oblivious to the amount of betrayal, back-stabbing, lawsuits, etc. were involved in the whole story. When looking at the main element of the film Facebook, which centers around friends liking pictures and statuses, and connecting with people around you, I realized that the elements concerning its creation are the total opposite (betrayal, making enemies).

Of course the film wouldn't have been great if it hadn't had the fantastic performances given by its actors and actresses. "The Social Network" presented two male leads (Eisenberg and Garfield) that I haven't really seen before and they both gave powerful performances and I'm positive that this film with jump start each of their careers (Garfield's even set to be the next Spider-Man).

When I watched "The Social Network," I saw a film about a man who wanted to create a place where people could always connect with their friends, talk with each-other, and look at other people's lives through pictures and status messages when really, he didn't have friends and relationship outside of the computer. This concept along with others like choosing between friends and money, come together to create a moving, dramatic masterpiece that will change the way you think about the world's most popular social network. I give it four stars out of four.

"The Social Network" has a running time of 121 minutes and is rated PG-13 for sexual content, drug and alcohol use and language.