Friday, April 8, 2011

Greek Tragedy and The Social Network (Some Minor Spoilers Ahead)

                The first time that I heard a movie about Facebook was being produced, I balked. While the development team behind the project looked stellar, the idea of an entire movie being based upon a website seemed ridiculous.
                However, after seeing the film, I realized that the movie was not ABOUT Facebook. It merely used the website as a center-point to launch the actual plot. To say that TSN was about Facebook is equivalent of saying that “Rear Window” is about broken legs. Instead of focusing solely on the creation of Facebook, Aaron Sorkin focuses on the CHARCTERS involved in the creation of the social network behemoth.
                In a nutshell (*SPOILERS*), TSN is a Greek tragedy based in the 21st century. Jesse Eisenburg as Mark Zuckerberg plays the part of the tragic hero perfectly. Filled with hubris and pride, he conquers the digital world as if he has always been on the top-and that others must respect that and his odd eccentricities.  James Garfield (aka the new Spiderman), steals scenes as the hero’s only true friend Eduardo Saverin; sacrificing his time and money in order to help Mark achieve his dreams, even when Mark turns him away. Justin Timberlake as Sean Parker plays a surprising role as the ubiquitous Devil archetype. He manages to steer Mark away from his only friend in the apparent pursuit of money; while Mark’s  true goal as the hero is to distinguish himself in a world“full of people who scored a 1600 on their SATs”. Mark also suffers from the hero’s fall, as his only true friend eventually exacts a deserved revenge, while the Devil character fails Mark when he needs him the most.  
                I never expected such a brilliant portrayal of characters and archetypes to be found within a concept that I first found ridiculous. It’s a huge relief to think that great storylines can still be created during this modern age of cinema that are focused upon 21st century,  instead of returning to tired settings and times.

7 comments:

  1. A movie that actually has a plot and story that didn't sound like it was made in 15 minutes? I may actually check out this movie..

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  2. I agree 100%. I don't even use facebook (I'm serious :)) and I still found it very good.

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  3. Really enjoyed it. It was interesting to see the background behind Facebook; especially due to the amount of time I spend on there.

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  4. I've seen The Social Network and it's definitely worth watching.

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  5. this was the fist revue of TSN that actually had me thinking to check it out

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  6. Yeah I agree with you ,cool site ..following

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